Of An Able Storm
by CaffeineKiddo
Summary: He wasn’t the type of guy she ever imagined herself falling in love with. He was rude, obnoxious and sarcastic at the best of times and... one of her best friends.
1. Welcome to the Jungle

_Hi all! This is my first story... Hope you like it! _

_The chapter title is taken from the Guns 'n' Roses, no copyright... blah, blah. The song has nothing to do with the story, I just liked the title.  
Disclaimer: If you know it, it isn't mine and if you don't... then chances are it still isn't. Although I own Charlie, Heradee and a few of the OCs. I don't even own the blanket that is keeping me warm because I stole it from an ex. Ha! The best thing about that relationship was the damn blanket. Sorry, I digress._

_Enjoy! _

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He wasn't the type of guy she ever imagined herself falling in love with. He was rude, obnoxious and sarcastic at the best of times, a total asshole jackass at the worst. He was crass, crude and unfortunately to her – also very cute, and for that, she kicked herself on a daily basis.

As a child, a young girl growing up surrounded by brothers (four – all older), she soon found that for all of the trouble that they could get themselves into, Charlotte Houston could not only keep up but she had a knack for getting herself, and them, out of it. Her father had been a Lieutenant in Starfleet and died in battle when she was just six months old so even her brothers barely knew that man that catered to what she hoped was the better part of her DNA. However, if there was one thing that was clearly imbedded into her personality from her father it was stubbornness. Some called it pig headedness, Charlie preferred 'strong willed aggression', tales of her father growing up mirrored stories of Charlie's escapes early on and although she never admitted to it, she was damn proud.

Besides, there wasn't much to do as the only daughter of a woman who spent her time at a country club, the stepdaughter of a man who she didn't really know nor cared to and with four older brothers who were torn between protecting her because she was their little sister and letting her play ball with them because she had a good arm and could fight like one of the boys so she learned how to wheel and deal - if there was one thing that little Charlie Houston could do, it was orchestrate something illegal. Whether it was simply taking bets on a fight in the school yard or managing to get a hold on cases of Romulan Ale in her later years, she could get it, organise it, make sure that no one in authority got a hold of such information and create quite a business. Needless to say, that didn't change at all when she got to the Academy – in fact, her Romulan Ale trade more than tripled and she enlisted Gaila especially, the two often pulling Heradee and sometimes Uhura into their deals and making quite a name for themselves with the Cadets.

It had all started when Charlotte enlisted as a Cadet at Starfleet Academy. She was excelling in all of her classes and had made friends, her roommate and two girls who shared a dorm a few rooms down from theirs. Her roommate, Heradee was a small town girl from the outskirts Ohio with a quiet voice and a constant need to bake whilst down the hall, Gaila and Uhura completed their posse. Gaila was an Orion native which meant she had bright green skin, silver eyelashes, wild coppery hair and a wicked smile as well as an appetite for any man she could get her hands on, whilst Uhura was the exotic girl from New York who oozed class and sophistication, her long dark hair and her ability to look down her nose at everyone yet still keep them on her side was unmatched thus far. The four make an interesting group and Charlie found that she had a few classes with each which didn't hurt – she was taking more classes than necessary to graduate in three years instead of four. It had been done before by her father and by god, she wasn't going to let her father's record beat her.

"I swear that if Admiral Archer asks me one more time about the Andorian political system, I'm going to scream. I need a very, very large drink. Well, another one." Charlotte moaned as she and her friends pushed their way through Packers, the four girls laughing giddily from the couple of glasses of Romulan Ale that they'd already consumed. Uhura twirled the end of her long black ponytail around her fingers as they waved to a few other friends there with other Cadets, the small scattering of Lieutenants and the small table of Captains up the back who looked as though they were there more to make sure that none of the hot headed students caused any trouble with the scattering of locals who sat around the bar, most of them already drunk and already sauntering around like they owned the place. On cue, the Captains got up to leave so it was clear that the Cadets and small crew of Lieutenants were on their own for the night.

"You guys find a table, I'll get drinks. First round on me." She told the girls, already pushing her way to the bar to be served, Charlotte looked around at the place, ignoring the crowd and spying a table a few back.

"Got one!" She called, grabbing Gaila's hand and pulling her behind as they claimed the table, falling into their seats and glancing around, waving at a few familiar faces and chatting to a few other Cadets that walked over to say hello.

He saw her as soon as she stepped through the door, like he had a sixth sense that a beautiful girl was walking into the bar although the door was behind him and with a smirk to himself, he realised that being friends with Jim he'd clearly picked up some of his friends' traits. She was beautiful with dark blonde hair that fell to her waist which she brushed it off her face carelessly, eyes a bizarre shade of blue green scanning the room for either a person or place to sit, sparkling as they flittered with recognition before a smile met faces that she apparently knew. The green skinned girl that she was with looked vaguely familiar as did the darker girl who had gone to the bar but he didn't know them anymore than a vague recognition, it was more than likely they were Jim's concubines that he'd tripped over in the morning trying to get back into his dorm as they fled or Jim chased them out. Chivalrously of course – Jim Kirk wasn't a man who burned his bridges with women unless it was absolutely necessary. They however, mostly burned them when he didn't call... or hooked up with their roommate the next weekend which happened more often than anyone cared to admit.

Leonard McCoy had been in love before, he was sure of it. Hell, he'd been married – a stupid, half drunken decision in his second year of college had turned into a divorce only ten months later, which he personally thought had been eight months (nine and a half if he was brutally honest) too long. His high school sweetheart was the southern belle that he was expected to raise children with, become a top ranking surgeon and smile pretty at all of the benefits and dinner parties but what good was it when the trophy on his arm was a complete and utter bitch? How quickly a wedding dress could turn even the most placid of women into the devil, how quickly the promise of stature could turn even the most sweet of girls into conniving thugs. Needless to say he finished his medical degree and then stupidly (another half drunken decision) ended up in Starfleet. There was no way that he was going to be a trophy surgeon... and he hated dinner parties. Sitting at a table with insufferable fools eating awful food – he'd felt like he was drowning in responsibilities too early in life and now, well, he was friends with James Kirk. Make of that what you will.

He glanced back to the blonde girl just in time to see her looking back to her friends with a smile that immediately sent X rated thoughts to his brain, he glared at his drink. Damn it, a girl like her could cause him to lose his mind way too easily which ordinarily he wouldn't argue with, but with exams coming up the last thing he wanted was to screw up a surgery because his mind was a million miles away, imagining what those lips could do.

"See something you like?" Jim asked him quietly with a smile as the table full of girls all laughed suddenly, their giggles attracting every male eye in the bar though they failed to notice.

"I'm not you Jim." He emptied his glass and set it back onto the table in front of them, fixing his best friend with a stare that blatantly called him out, the other guy laughing and shrugging.

"Ouch Bones. But I'll take it. Heads up, there's a local going over there..."

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_So, what'd y'all think? The first few chapters were written after the rest of the story so this was, oddly, the hardest part to write. Hmm. _

_Hope you liked it and I don't want to beg for a review but... please do!! _

_Xx_


	2. Renegade Fighter

_**Hi again! **I'm posting chapter two pretty much straight away, so here goes..._

_The chapter title is taken from a band called Zed. It bears no relevance to the chapter, I just like the name. And it's an awesome song. This chapter is partially inspired by the songs 'Everything is Alright' by Motion City Soundtrack and 'Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart' by the Divinyls - simply because I always play that whenever I've had too much to drink. The last part of the chapter was written whilst listening to the Dandy Warhols' 'We Used to Be Friends' and cursing the OC (TV Show, not 'original character'!) for ruining it for me._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek. If I did, the Enterrpise would have naked Tuesdays. I own my OC's._

_The biggest shout out of all time to Fett012000, my very first reviewer and favourite-er! Thank you so, so, so much to infinity for your kind words and you will forever have a large peice of my blackened heart!_

_Without further adeiu, here 'tis..._

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He was sitting with a group of other Cadets from the Academy a few of whom she recognised, his eyes narrowed at his drink as he contributed idly to the conversation around him that looked to be getting louder and more out of control as the drinks flowed and more people joined their table. All of the guys at the table were fairly hot and she wasn't too sure why this guy had caught her eye – short dark hair messily pushed back by frustrated hands, bright hazel eyes and a somewhat pissed off expression at things that were obviously being said. He glanced over to the girls' table and Charlie whipped her head back around to see Uhura and Gaila smirking at her, Heradee in the middle of talking, using wild hand gestures to emphasise her points, whatever they were. The other three girls were having their own conversation with their eyes, Uhura looking over Charlotte's shoulder at the table of boys, immediately pulling a face and sliding her eyes back to Charlotte's.

"Ugh. The biggest jerks on campus." She murmured, her eyes staying on Charlotte who rolled her blue eyes and stirred her drink.

"I'm sure they are. I can look though, can't I?"

"Who?" Heradee asked, Gaila glanced over and bit her lip.

"Oh, the guy in the black t-shirt. Man, he was _great_." She drew the word out and closed her eyes momentarily, her bright green skin changing shade very slightly as the other three girls shrieked.

"Gaila! Stop!"

"Really Gaila, do you have to?"

"Oh my god! That's my room! And he's such a pompous jerk!" Uhura shrieked finally, the four girls giggling as they tapped their glasses together in a toast, Gaila just shrugged and toyed with her glass.

"There's a drought in hot guys on campus."

"That's because most of them get blasted off into space." Charlotte joked, Uhura eyed her roommate Gaila who had quite a reputation and quite a few notches on her bedpost in the Academy in the year and a half she'd been a Cadet. It was mind boggling to think what her total would more than likely get up to by the time they graduated in two and half years.

"That's because you've slept with most of them already!"

"I'm sorry, not all of us can be head over heels for mystery men, can we?" The green skinned girl shot back, Charlotte and Uhura exchanged a smirk. It was a secret between the two that Uhura was crushing on one of their professors, a Vulcan only a few years their senior. "Yeah, are we ever going to meet this mystery guy?" Heradee asked, Uhura shook her head adamantly, used to this argument.

"I told you – he's a secret!"

"Besides, isn't sneaking around part of the fun?" Charlotte asked, both girls smirked.

"Oh, it is."

"Stop! Please! Or I'm going to end up going home with one of the egos. Again." Gaila moaned as a couple of locals sauntered over, trying their luck to be shot down straight away. They didn't seem to take the hint though no matter how cold the girls were, one larger guy in a chequered shirt leaning down, resting his elbows on the table.

"Are all Starfleet girls as hot as you?"

"No. We're a rare breed."

"Now go away." Heradee finished up for Charlotte, the man looking unsteady on his feet as a few of his friends walked over, even trailing a few of the local ladies with them who were glaring at the Academy girls as though _they_ were trying to pick up the local guys - all of them gross and drunk, Charlotte sighed. This was going to get messy. Whilst Uhura and Gaila shut them all down systematically and asked them to leave, the guy who had ventured over first took a step back and Charlotte stretched her leg out, hooking it around the back of a spare chair at the table next to her, dragging it back slightly so that he fell over it. The man fell to the floor loudly and suddenly it was like every person in the bar sprang to life – the Academy guys from the table that the girls had been discussing (staring at, in some cases) were suddenly standing there, one of the guys who was recognised as the guy who Gaila had apparently hooked up with standing closely in front of one of the locals, his pale blue eyes glaring viciously.

"I think these ladies asked you to leave." His voice was calm but his stance was anything but, Charlotte felt a pit settle in her stomach –yup, this was definitely going to get messy. Great.

"You whores! Want every goddamn guy in the place!" One of the local girls shrilled drunkenly, Charlottes eyes narrowed to slits when the girls voice grated on her second to last nerve.

"Actually, we just wanted to drink in peace. If you can't handle your men, don't expect us to." Her voice was just as vicious as the guy's had been, her eyes betraying her anger too. There were four girls and at least 8 guys from the Academy there, all of whom trained to fight hand to hand combat against roughly 12 locals who looked as though they weren't trained for anything other than farm maintenance. It was a lesson to not choose the bar furthest away from the Academy and stick to the city, the further out they got, the locals seemed to be larger and more stupid. And apparently suicidal.

"You knocked me over." The guy who fell accused Charlotte who geared up to snap a reply back, the guy who was playing the role of their saviour shoved him roughly instead.

"You don't talk to them. Anything you have to say goes through me."

"Uh oh." Heradee murmured, Uhura stepped forward and looked at the Academy boys, none of them in fight stance but their presence there meant that they'd back up anyone from the Academy before you could blink. Especially if their friend was standing nose to nose with a guy who looked like he was going to swing at any time... although from what Charlotte could tell from the Cadet that was toe to toe with the local, chances were this could end messy from his doing.

"Guys, stop." Her voice was forceful and calm, something that had come through in her time with the Vulcan, one of the locals sneered.

"Oh look. The women think I'm going to kick your ass." The male Cadet laughed derisively and the guy that Charlotte had been checking out rolled his eyes, his arms folded over his chest.

"Jim..." He trailed off warningly, Gaila batted her long, silver eyelashes at him and smiled flirtatiously.

"Don't want him protecting us?"

"Don't want another night in Starfleet lock up." Was the reply, it wasn't friendly or rude, it was indifferent as though the Cadet and his friends had been in this situation a hundred times before and knew what was coming. His voice was deep and slightly gravely and he spoke with a Southern accent, Charlotte tried not to smile or look over at him because she could feel her cheeks reddening slightly, something that she was going to curse herself over later that night but as the Cadet apparently named Jim smiled thinly at the local and patted his shoulder, the small cluster of Academy cadets who were standing there sighed – it was on.

"You should be worrying about your own ass, cupcake."

"Cupcake?" The local replied with a punch straight to Jim's jaw, suddenly the two were crashing to the floor amidst punches and shrieks from the rest of the bar who scattered, suddenly it was locals versus Academy and Jim's crew were in a bar fight, Heradee shrieking for them to stop as glasses got smashed, tables got fallen through, chairs broke when people fell on them. It had gone from relative calm to chaos in that blink of an eye. Gaila tried to pull any guy who was beating on another apart but her small frame didn't do much good – one of the locals shook her off and sent her flying, and as Charlotte went to push a table out of the way when she could see one of the Academy guys and a local heading for it, one of the local girls picked up a bar stool and came at her with it which Charlotte ducked, throwing a punch blindly, not sure where she connected but as the girl fell back and Charlotte felt pain surge through her fist, she gasped and clamped her hand over her mouth, seeing Uhura pick up a bar stool and break it over some local guy's back, shattering it successfully and looking pleased with herself when that gave the Academy guy he was fighting a chance to land a few more punches and knock the sucker out.

Right next to the bar someone broke a bottle and one of the other girls picked it up, coming at Charlotte again, who sighed frantically. Was she really getting into a bar fight? It was exciting and also embarrassing, but hey, at least Uhura was at her side, two of the local girls deciding that the boys shouldn't e having all the fun. It was exactly like the fight simulations that the two had been in the day before but they were fighting two male Klingons armed with Batleth's, not two drunk girls with a bottle and fists, respectively. Besides, if the drunk local girls were going to fight first, they could hardly expect any of the Academy boys to hit a girl – that was crossing too many lines even for the most arrogant of Cadets.

"Here we go." Starfleet trained its students to avoid the fight at all costs, ducking punches and advances before anything else before gaining on your opponent, leaving fighting as a last resort. It was just reaching the last resort when there was a loud, sharp shrill whistle through the air of the bar and everyone looked over to see a Captain standing in the doorway looking supremely pissed, all Academy students dropped what they were doing and jumped to attention, most of the locals falling to the floor in the midst of the debris and blood.

"Academy students, out NOW!" The Captain barked and there was little noise but the sound of the jukebox still going but now dragging its tune as a local lay knocked out over the top, the Academy students filing outside. There were roughly forty Cadets that stood outside but only 8 stood bloodied or scratched, 8 guys and two girls, Heradee and Gaila standing next to Uhura and Charlotte who were trying to stand to attention and not look so pleased with themselves, but their torn uniforms and the slight gash of blood on either was a clear indicator that they too had been involved in the fight inside. Heradee and Gaila had managed to get out with barely a scratch because they hadn't actually fought, Gaila's shrieks could have been heard for miles though.

"Everyone, go back to your dorms. It's past curfew." The Captain ordered the line of Cadets who started to scurry off, before holding up his palm.

"Except for the eight of you." Heradee and Gaila looked at their two friends who had been asked to stay back with a look of pity but still hurried off, Charlotte looked down at the line that they were in trying not to hide a smile – had they really just been in a bar fight? Adrenaline was coercing through her veins and she wanted to giggle, knowing that Uhura felt the same, both with hangovers creeping in. Now the idea of Romulan Ale wasn't looking so good. The Captain walked in front of the line for a few moments, assessing the situation before he spoke, his voice even.

"Does anybody care to explain why we're out here?" No one spoke and Charlotte wasn't sure why, it was like there was an unspoken agreement to only speak when absolutely necessary. She tried to stand to attention as best she could but it was hard when her uniform had been ripped, her boots were killing her feet, she was still partially tipsy and had taken a couple of blows – locals could fight. Not as well as Academy Cadets, but humanoid locals definitely had nothing better to do that sleep with farm animals and fight each other – she fervently wished that she'd had that epiphany before she'd gotten involved.

"Anyone?" The Captain asked again, stopping in front of one of the men that Charlotte either didn't know or couldn't remember at the time, standing toe to toe with him. Her tactical training told her that this move was to invade the Cadet's personal space and make him feel uncomfortable enough to speak but personally, Charlotte didn't think that he looked half as menacing as the Cadet apparently named Jim had when he'd used the same tactic minutes ago in the bar against the local.

"Cadet Gingsberg?"

"The locals started it, Sir. They were harassing some of the female Cadets."

"And you felt it best to fight them? For what? Glory? To impress the women?" The Captain snapped, still glaring at the same Cadet, obviously deciding that he was the best and only source of information for the time being.

"The women?" Charlotte murmured to Uhura in a disgusted voice, feeling slightly degraded and feministic at the unflattering label. The women – it was so 21st Century.

"Well, it was very unladylike of us to get into a bar fight." Uhura half joked, it was true but the two, as ladylike as they were, were also Starfleet Cadets – all of whom were pretty much adrenaline junkies with superiority complexes... a few with authority complexes too and as Jim sat down on the floor and glared at the captain, it was clear that he fell into that category. The Captain glared at him but ignored his action for the time being – the guy was bloodied and torn up, if he hadn't sat, he'd have fallen. He'd much rather his reduction to the floor be on his terms.

"Is something amusing to you, Cadet Uhura?" The captain walked over to stand in front of her, the girl shook her head and stopped abruptly, Charlotte's hand shot out behind her friend to steady her.

"No sir. I was simply stating to Cadet Houston here that it was very unladylike of us to get involved in a bar fight." Being best friends, Charlotte could hear a slight giggle waver her voice but her face stayed deadpan although her comment was sarcastic, the captain not getting that though – it was a sarcastic joke between "the women".

"And you would be right. Tell me, what is your version of the events that have unfolded tonight?" The captain looked at Uhura skeptically until she spoke, staring straight ahead and Charlotte knew that it wasn't to stand at attention, more like focus on a sole point so that she didn't sway or fall over.

"The locals were drunk and hitting on us although we had rejected their advances, they wouldn't take no for an answer. So when some of the men came over to ask them to leave, the locals started a fight."

"And you and Cadet Houston were involved how?" Charlotte's name was like a wake up call to her, standing a little straighter as Uhura kept her focal point.

"We were the women that were in the local's sights, Sir. And then some of the local women advanced on us, so we were left to defend ourselves because we would never ask any of the men to hit one of the women." Charlotte was doing everything in her power to keep a straight face and not giggle, every time the phrase "the women" or "the men" was used it made her want to giggle so badly that she had to press her fingernails into her palms behind her back, adjusting her stance slightly so that she too didn't sway at all because that too would make her a giggling mess and more than likely drag Uhura with her.

"Is this true, Cadet Houston?" The captain turned his glare to her and she nodded, rocking back on her heels slightly to regain her balance.

"Yes Sir."

"You stand by everything that Cadet Gingsberg and Cadet Uhura have said?"

"Yes Sir." He studied her for a moment and Charlotte kept her face a blank canvas, no emotion or feeling whatsoever until he passed her, walking back down the line.

"Fine. Get back to the dorms and clean yourselves up, local law enforcement will be here very soon and Starfleet will have to deal with it. Report to the main auditorium for punishment at 0730 hours." He dismissed them with a wave of his hand and Uhura leaned back and grabbed her coat, pulling a face.

"0730 on a Sunday?"

"We're going to be so hung over." Charlotte agreed quietly, looking over to where Jim was rubbing his aching jaw, she bit her lip.

"Do you want me to get you some ice?" She didn't know what else to say but figured that she should thank one of their saviours in some way, although it was pretty much safe to assume that Gaila would. At her question all six of the guys looked over to the two girls that stood in front of them, both looking as worse for wear as they were.

"You look like you need some yourself, Cadet...?" He was inquiring her name and she ignored it, brushing her palm over a cut on her forehead, a product of flying glass from one of the female locals.

"It's a cut, nothing major. Do you want some ice or not? If the cops are on their way I'd rather not be here – especially if the locals come around – I don't think any of us could deal with round 2."

"No one is going back into that bar, get back to the Academy and get yourselves to the infirmary there." The Captain snapped; Uhura shrugged on her jacket.

"Fine. Thanks anyway, guys. Have a nice night." She linked her arm through Charlottes and the two set off, feeling pairs of eyes on their backs.

"Well, we couldn't have ended up with cuter saviours, but you already noticed that, didn't you?" Uhura guessed as the two girls giggled loudly, hurrying back to the dorms.

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_**Authors Notes:** _

_Ah, so we have first contact. (Pun intended, brownie points if you get it!) _

_The next few chapters are going to be highlighting incidents that happen during the Academy years - I had a bunch of oneshots written and nothing for this part, just a three year gap which was kind of stupid. So I've used the oneshots for now, I might go back and write some kind of college-esque fic based at the Academy later but hey, lets not get ahead of ourselves just yet._

_What do you think so far? If you could let me know, that'd be great! Reviewers will get a rambling, caffeine-fuelled reply! _

_Xx_


	3. Hard Act to Follow

_Okay, I'm a complete idiot who can't even read her own story... at the end of the last chapter, I said that this chapter would be that start of a few oneshots. I totally lied and forgot that I had this chapter right here in front of my very blurry eyes (I'm trying to watch NCIS and type at the same time - why is DiNozzo so hot? Sigh.) so this one below picks up right where the last one left off. Well, a few hours later. Sorry, my bad._

_**Disclaimer:** Star Trek isn't mine. Bones isn't mine, nor is Jim, the Academy or anything cool like that. I do have my Pirates of the Caribbean Pez collection that I bought today as a random joke for a friend but then decided that I wanted to keep them for myself... please don't take them away from me. I like being able to snap candies from Johnny Depp's neck. Woah, that sounds savage. The chapter title is taken from an Aussie band called Grinspoon. It bears no relevance to the chapter but the song is awesome. The video for it not so much, but the song is great. I highly recommend YouTubing it! _

_Enjoy..._

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The main auditorium at Starfleet Academy was huge and Charlotte always hated it – if she was in there it meant some form of pomp and ceremony and that she wasn't a fan of. Especially at 07:30 hours on a Sunday and with a hangover that was making it hard for her to think – the infirmary could heal nearly everything but hangovers they refused which Charlotte could begrudgingly understand, although at the moment she hated the damn policy. She and Uhura entered the theatre with one minute to spare, Uhura looking as though nothing had happened the night before – her long black hair slicked into its trademark high ponytail, large earrings and heavy eye makeup, whilst Charlotte felt utterly hideous – her hair was tied back into a messy ponytail and although she had managed some makeup, it was to make herself look human, not enhance anything like it was meant. To top it off, the image of the cute guy from the night before had danced through her mind a few times now which angered her more than anything and as the girls tripped into the auditorium and he was there, her heart skipped a beat and she mentally berated herself once again.

"Cutting it close girls." The Captain told them snidely as they walked down the stairs to the first few rows where the guys sat, folded and flaked out over numerous chairs each, the guy who had haunted her thoughts sat in the second row with his legs stretched over chairs diagonally in front of him, his hazel eyes watching the two girls as they sat.

"Its 07:29 – one whole minute to spare." The blonde Cadet... Houston was what she'd been called last night snapped at the Captain, crossing her legs and again sending McCoy's temperature higher. It was too early for this and she wasn't helping his cause, looking too beautiful for her own good too early in the morning. The Captain ignored her reply and continued with the same lecture that each had been expecting the night before and each of the men in the room knew off by heart – a bar fight was nothing new for them and it sure as hell wouldn't be the last that Bones knew. He struggled to stay awake as the Captain spoke, clearly enjoying the sound of his own voice and his own power, McCoy looked over to the girl to see her sitting similar to how he was, long legs stretched out as she examined her nails, there was a small cut on her forehead that he ached to examine closer. He allowed himself the luxury of watching her for a few more moments before mentally giving himself a kick and dragging his attention to the Captain begrudgingly. Girls were trouble, they were specimens designed to drive males insane and they did a damn good job of it, taking solace in the knowledge that eventually he'd be home free on a Starship or Starbase somewhere, hopefully as far away from Earth as possible and its cunning females. Although that thought made him queasy too – the idea of flying made him shudder – as the only guy in Starfleet who hated to fly.

They were allowed to leave soon after, a harsh warning and the Captain's lecture punishment enough for a Sunday morning and as the two girls climbed the stairs; Charlotte looked to her best friend.

"Uhura, can we get coffee now?" She half whined, half pleaded and next to McCoy, Jim smirked and fell into step beside the blonde girl with a shit-eating grin.

"Glad to see he's feeling better." Rodney Altridge sneered, Bones rolled his eyes. Jim's ways with women ended in black eyes as often as they did success and besides being his best friend and his Doctor, McCoy was also his wingman and the guy who bailed him out of trouble when needed. And visa-versa too of course, though it rarely went in the opposite way and didn't look like changing any time soon.

"Yeah Uhura, can we?" Jim asked the darker skinned girl who smiled thinly, looking as though she was trying not to say something that would seem ungrateful for the night before.

"Hello Jim."

"You know, I think that after last night you should tell me your first name. We're all comrades now, why don't we get to know each other a little better?" He smiled widely at Charlotte now who was getting grumpier without caffeine, raising an eyebrow.

"I think we have very different opinions on what constitutes getting to know each other a little better." Her tone was cold, her words crisp, but the corners of her lips picked up slightly in a smile that was bubbling under the surface and Jim looked back at McCoy, smirking. He'd seen his best friend the good doctor checking out the blonde last night and then in the theatre and he had every right to – she was hot and neither of the guys knew her.

"I'm sorry; our friend Uhura hasn't introduced us. I'm Jim Kirk. This is Leonard McCoy. And you are?"

"In dire need of coffee." The blonde grumbled in reply as they reached the mess hall, Uhura laughed.

"I'm not your friend. I've met you three times and twice have been in bar fights and the other you were nude in my dorm."

"Ah, you're the one. Well, one of the ones. I'm Charlotte Houston. Jim Kirk and Leonard McCoy, right?" Her eyes met McCoy's and she felt her stomach jump pleasantly, he smiled back and said nothing as Jim's face registered recognition.

"Wait. Houston?" Jim asked, she nodded patiently.

"As in Houston, Texas. Wait – did you say Kirk? Your fath-"

"You're Michael Houston's kid? Our fathers served together." He cut her off quietly, she nodded again.

"You're George Kirk's son. They did, yes. Went to the Academy together. I'm sorry about your father; mine passed away six months later." She admitted, Kirk's eyes narrowed not in malice but question.

"How?"

"Jim..." McCoy murmured, it was Sunday morning and they were all battling hangovers, this wasn't exactly the type of conversation that was usually had at this time. Besides, he'd seen the girl swing a pretty damn good punch last night and he was sure that she wouldn't hesitate again if Jim asked too many questions about her deceased father.

"No, it's fine. But thanks. He was on the Truman when they were attacked by... well, I don't know. Something. I was only a baby and no one talks about it so I didn't know." She shrugged it off and took another drink of her coffee, now slightly more civilised that she had caffeine in her. Kirk looked lost in thought for a moment and Gingsberg stood, reaching his hand over to Charlotte and Uhura, shaking theirs.

"I'm Ted Gingsberg."

"I'm Rodney Altridge."

"Ken Fairbanks."

"Neil Sofree." The other boys suddenly introduced themselves, the two girls smiling slightly and taking the boys in their stride, the blonde shook some stray hair from her face as they spoke.

"You two handled yourselves well last night." Ken told them appreciatively, McCoy tried not to roll his eyes. The four boys were falling over themselves and it was embarrassing, he sat back in his seat to survey the scene.

"Thanks to Starfleet combat, right? Maybe I'll go into security now instead of linguistics." Uhura shrugged jokingly, her demeanour less harsh now that Jim wasn't hitting on her every ten seconds. And had his pants on.

"That's the last time we ever go to a bar further out of the city." Charlotte agreed quietly with a smirk, Uhura nodded.

"The last time we ever down a bottle of Romulan Ale before we go out."

"Ugh." Charlotte literally turned green at the thought, Kirk quirked an eyebrow.

"Romulan Ale? That's highly illegal, ladies."

"She gets it from a friend on Romulus." Uhura indicated Charlotte who stared into her coffee cup in reply, McCoy was impressed. He had both girls pinned as straight laced; smuggling in highly illegal ale was something to be proud of. Damn her.

"A smuggler?" He asked with a smile, she looked up and felt her cheeks pink up when it was directed at her.

"I prefer to think of it as a useful tool for negotiations."

"Bribery." He clarified, she laughed quietly and nodded.

"Exactly."

"Exactly what?" A voice asked the table and they all looked up to see the other two girls from the night before standing there, the one with the bright green skin batting her silver eyelashes at Jim who smiled winningly back at them although everyone who knew Jim Kirk knew that he never went somewhere twice without good reason.

"We were talking about the horrible effects of Romulan Ale and how evil it is." Charlotte grimaced as the two girls sat, the fourth shrugging.

"You two of all people should know that Charlie. How are you feeling? Uhura?"

"Fine. We're fine, just tired."

"How are you guys? It looked pretty rough last night." The green girl asked the boys who all shrugged, Kirk drained his coffee.

"We're good. Bones patches us up pretty well."

"You're a Doctor?" Uhura asked him, the guy with the hypnotic hazel eyes and troublemaking smile nodded.

"Sure am."

"Hence the name 'Bones'." She surmised, the group staying and talking for awhile, getting along surprisingly well. No one at the table could have realised what bonds would run strong for a few people at the table in many years to come, nor would they realise the events that would drastically alter their lives that were just around the corner.

From that day, those minor events in the scope of things, the group were inseparable.

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_**Author's Notes:**_

__

_The next few chapters are going to be highlighting incidents that happen during the Academy years. This time, it's definitely next chapter I promise! _

You know what's killing me right now? Karl Urban is in my country and I'm not in Sydney. I feel like Australia's flags should be flying at half mast out of respect or something. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

_A massive, massive thank you to those that have reviewed: __RachyDoodle (Don't ever hang your head at being a Chekov fan! EVER!!), Cristy Daae (lets toast your overwhelming stock of brownie points to being favourable people shall we?), Hidden Relevance, FuzzyDeath (I get really distracted by shiny phones too, especially when they're on the stretchy cords in store...), thebloodrose and to those who have added, alerted and favourited! I hope not to disappoint! _

_Reviewers get cyber hugs and the satisfaction that they have unleashed some form of a happy dance at their expense... Xx_


	4. One Year, Six Months

_Hello again! Chapter 4, here we go! This is the first part of the oneshots focussed on their relationships I suppose at the Academy... it was only meant to be two or three chapters but it's blown out a little... sorry. But we all like us some debauched Bones and Jim, don't we? :)_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek. The guy who created it is dead. I am neither a male nor dead. I own Charlie, Dirk Squarejaw and any other OC's and will rent them out for parties and bar mitzvahs. Dirk does balloon animals. The song is by Yellowcard. Again, it has nothing to do with the chapter, it was just random that I found a song title that fit roughly timeline wise of where this takes place into their Cadetship. _

_Enjoy..._

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She was sick and tired of seeing her friend sprawled out over a bar table, having taken on one too many guys in a fight, his nose and knuckles bleeding. She was sick and tired of frogmarching him to the infirmary when Bones was working to get him patched up, she was sick and tired of having to apologise to the bartenders and bribe their secrecy to Starfleet or anyone else with Romulan Ale or whatever else valuable she'd managed to get her hands on, she was sick and tired of cleaning up Jim's mess.

It was the third time that month when Charlie and Heradee wrangled Jim into the infirmary; Bones saw them and sighed heavily, roughly dragging a barely conscious Jim to his feet.

"You've got to be kidding me."

"We walked in to see him, Neil and five locals hashing it out." Heradee told him as they walked the familiar route to a med bay, their Doctor rolling his eyes.

"How's Neil?"

"Doesn't have a scratch – he was pulling the locals off this one."

"I coulda' taken 'em." Jim slurred, it was Charlie's turn to roll her eyes.

"Right, just like you coulda' walked your ass over here yourself?"

"Right..." the drunken guy agreed stupidly, Bones threw him down onto a bio bed and reached for his tri corder, scanning his friends face and ribs for any damages.

"How are the locals?"

"He did okay – two were bleeding, one had a glass cut in his forearm and the other two were too drunk to notice that they were a little late to the fight. We got out of there just before the bar called the Academy." Heradee sat next to Jim on the bio bed and giggled when he laid his head on her shoulder, Charlie paced the small area and glared at Jim but refrained from ranting at him.

"Busy night?" She asked Bones as he loaded up a hypo spray, he smiled at her and shook his head.

"I've been doing homework all night. Riveting."

"As opposed to this?" She indicated their friend who was starting to fall asleep, mumbling incoherently under his breath and wincing with a few curse words as Bones pushed the spray into his jugular with a little more force than necessary.

"Great options." He murmured, Heradee looked to Charlie, a frown etched onto her forehead.

"Where's Uhura and Gaila?"

"Uhura's with her mystery man and Gaila left the bar with someone before we even got there."

"Who did she leave with?"

"Not sure. Non Starfleet, apparently."

"Because she's done every guy in Starfleet."

"Apparently so." Charlie mused, not thinking about it and sitting down in a chair, yawning tiredly.

"Thanks Jim – way to cut our night short."

He watched as she stretched up to kiss the other guy's cheek, smiling and shrieking as he grabbed her ass when she turned to leave. It made him feel ill, as though he'd digested too many of the street hotdogs that littered the streets of San Francisco and he knew why, knew that he wanted her but wouldn't do anything about it. She'd been seeing this guy for three weeks now that he knew of and she seemed happy, smiling to herself and arriving to their shared lunches late, often re-doing her hair. He wanted to be the one that made her hair messy in the first place, he wanted to be the one that made her smile, he wanted to be the one whose bed she crawled into at night and he wanted to be the one who she ran across the lawns and jumped into his arms.

He watched her through the window at the infirmary and glared at the guy's back, he couldn't be bothered to remember his name. But Charlie looked happy and in a sick, twisted way, he wished that she wouldn't be so. He saw her walking across the lawns and before his brain had caught up with the rest of his body, was halfway out the door of the infirmary, yelling 'taking my break!' over his shoulder. He caught up with her easily and fell into step beside her as she walked, enjoying the look of shock that flitted across her eyes.

"God, you scared me!" She gasped and clutched her heart to wait for it to return to its normal beat, realising that was futile – it was always at double speed when McCoy was around. He laughed at her fright as they stopped walking; he glanced back at the Infirmary. He really should be getting back, but what good was a Doctor whose mind was elsewhere? Besides, he'd been cooped up inside lecture theatres and Medical labs all day – he'd forgotten what sunshine looked like.

"You busy?"

"I've got Xenosciences. Ugh. Come on Romeo, you can walk me to class," She replied with a smile, linking her arm through his as they headed towards one of the huge buildings, he reached around her and slid her bag from her far shoulder, feeling it heavier than it should have been, "Research. And before you ask, it's for a paper. Not personal." She told him with a grin, used to his ranting that she did way too much research for her own good. What was the point in trying to learn every political system in the Federation? Sure, the Academy stipulated that they had to know the basics, but really, Charlie took it above and beyond. They walked in silence for a moment before he spoke, trying to keep his voice light but even he could hear it catch slightly, unable to get the image of her and that oaf on the lawn out from behind his eyes.

"You and Dirk Squarejaw look happy." God, saying that killed him. Of course, yes, he was fishing for her to reveal that she was about to break up with him, that she hated the oversized lumberjack with every fibre of her being and then he would be hard pressed to not break out into something resembling the happy dance that Jim did when he'd drank way too much for the night. She laughed slightly, her eyes catching his as they climbed the front steps of the building, ignoring other people as they passed.

"Dirk Squarejaw? Really?" She was laughing blatantly at his choice of nickname for her beau; he looked pleased with himself but shrugged it off.

"Yeah. Why not? Let me guess – brawn boy is a security wannabe?" Hell, he was picking on the guy already, why not vent completely? Well, not completely, but whilst she'd given him an avenue to mock the mentally deficient goat, he was going to take it and run with it.

Why Bones? Jealous?" She quipped and he looked back down to her, his face serious but his hazel green eyes dancing and a smile spreading slowly over his lips.

"I am." Funny, those words sounded so heavy to him, their weight and their truth closer to their target than he could ever say, than she would ever know. She licked her lips and watched her feet as they moved through the hall, her insides feeling like lead at his words. If only they were true. Two people could be so close yet so far apart from each other and love unconditionally in so many different ways; so many different avenues yet not have a clue.

"You have Nancy." Her voice was higher and she tried to remain matter-of-fact, the woman's name twisting in her throat. Bones' girlfriend. The woman that she hated with every fibre of her being though she rarely knew her, she lived off campus and didn't want anything to do with Starfleet. It hit Bones like a bucket of ice water, his girlfriend's name being brought up and there was no reason for it to, but hearing Charlie bring her up was just weird.

"I do. And she's great." He added as an afterthought, Charlie nodded and sighed quietly.

"That's great." Her voice was an echo as they wandered through the halls of the large building, Bones kept his eyes on her as they walked.

"So... Dirk. It's been awhile, yeah?"

"Only a couple of weeks. He's fun."

"Fun? Whoa, sounds serious." He mocked her jokingly, holding up both palms and she simply nodded, keeping a straight face.

"Oh, it is. We're going to get married, I'm going to become Susie Homemaker and we're going to have a gaggle of mini Dirk's, Bricks, Ridge's and Mary-Sue's." They both shuddered visibly at the thought and laughed; Bones shot her a sly grin.

"I've tasted your attempts at cooking and trust me, that's not going to happen."

"Shoot me if it ever does." She joked as they reached her class, she stopped by the door but didn't make a move to go inside and Bones glanced at the time that was on the wall – he really had to get back to the infirmary but damn, it was _Charlie_. The girl could stop time if she wanted to, right? The pedestal that he had her on in his mind told him that she could.

"Try not to aggravate anyone in the lecture, will you? I was sitting in front of the last guy that you belittled the class after."

"You didn't jump to my defence?" She asked in mock horror and he leaned forward slightly and scrunched his nose, handing her bag over.

"No, I agreed with him."

"Yeah, thanks. Are we still on for tonight?" She smiled and swung the bag over her shoulder, they had a study date for a test the next day.

"Yup. The infirmary, 21:30."

"I'll bring dinner." She told him, holding her palm up for a high five which he obliged, reaching over to mess her hair up as he turned to leave.

"See you then, Susie."

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_Aww. Isn't he sweet? The next chapter is ready and raring to go and I have a sneaking suspicion that it might be - No, can't say that. Lets just say that... it was fun to write? Yeah, that's safe. _

_So, it's absolutely hammering down with rain, hail and thunderstorms here at the moment and has been all week (insert me whining a lot about hating Winter here) and it's killing my broadband. However, I have taken great advantage of my a) asshole boss b) sick leave owing and c) the fact that when its so wet I really don't want to drive 40 minutes to work in peak hour traffic... to take this week off work! Because I have a really bad flu... ahem... and a Doctor who doles out sick certificates like lollipops. So, not to barter reviews for chapters, but seeing as I'm sitting on my ass watching 21 Jump Street DVD's (the McQuade Brothers!) and the Mighty Ducks (don't mock me, Guy Germaine and I were going to get married when I was like, 12), I may be able to fit updating more often into my hectic schedule. Just saying. _

_Massive shout outs to those who have reviewed: NaomiBlue, RachyDoodle, aliaslover14, stargirl0507, Fett012000, J-awesomeness, Cullen-Girl-4-Life, FuzzyDeath - love you all long time! _

_Xx_


	5. Funny Little Feeling

_Hi again! _

_Disclaimer: I don't own the cute ones. I like to think I do, but when I yelled 'Dance Pine, Dance!' and 'Take off your pants, Urban!', security escorted me off the movie lot. Rude.  
The chapter title is taken from the band 'Rock N Roll Soldiers'. Love this song._

_**Shameless plug:**__ Has everyone read FuzzyDeath's Rewritten, Remean and Relapse? They are seriously awesome and her OC is a legend. I wholeheartedly urge you to check them out, tell her I sent you and you may just get some cookies... _

_Alrighty then, here we go. This chapter is best served with your favourite party music cranked - I was listening to JLO and LLCoolJ's 'Control Myself' and the YingYang Twins 'Drop'. Purely by accident, but I had to keep them on repeat otherwise Duffy would come on. Kind of a downer. _

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Jim Kirk was at it again and after the week he'd had, Bones was actually applauding his friend's deviancy. The Lieutenant RA in the boys' dorm had been called off planet which was a rarity and was looking to be on his mission for at least a week and by insert deity here, Jim Kirk's face had lit up like a Christmas display at Rockefeller Centre. Since then, the Cadet had been a mixture of cackling elation, prancing about campus as he appointed himself social director of the week and anyone who asked too many questions was met with a cutting pale blue eye and the simple phrase 'ask again and miss out' before moving onto the next cluster of girls and telling them that the "schedule" would be sent to everyone's PADD's within the next 24 hours. Whoever he'd managed to charm into sending the schedule must have been some geek who would never normally get a chance to be at anything that Jim Kirk would throw, let alone being an accomplice, so when Bones' PADD beeped when he was in the infirmary that night and nothing but the words 'Toga party – tomorrow night' were displayed, he figured that said geek was on a shorter leash than first thought.

"What the hell is he on about?" Nurse Murphy asked looking over at Bones and frowning at her PADD, it didn't take a genius to figure out who she was talking about. A toga party? Clearly Jim hadn't done his laundry and wanted everyone on campus to walk around in their bed sheets. Sadly? That four worded message meant that a good 90% of the Cadet Student body would be at the boys' dorms wearing their bedclothes the next night.

"You're off your rocker, you know that? Half the campus is questioning your sanity as we speak Jim. Honestly, I'm all for drinking. Hell, I'm all for drinking in excess, but doing so in a bed sheet?" He snapped when he returned to their dorm later that night, Nurse Murphy had pulled out a sheet and tried to fashion it around herself as soon as she'd gotten Jim's message and after seeing how little the large piece of fabric left to the imagination, he was slightly more warmed to the idea. But still, he wouldn't be Bones McCoy if he didn't question Jim's sanity and put some brakes on his deviant, horn-dog behaviour every now and then.

"Bones, relax. We work hard – isn't it commonsense that we play hard too?" Jim replied with his trademark smirk, stretching his legs out and toying with a PADD in his hand as Bones pulled his tunic off, shaking his head with a small smile, "How was your shift? Was Nurse Murphy on? Man, she has a set of –"

"They're real." Bones interrupted him with a sly grin and his friend raised his arms in victory, jumping up onto his bed like an overenthusiastic teenager.

"Bless you good man! I've been trying to get into her pants for a whole year!" He yelled joyously and Bones rolled his eyes, not in the habit of discussing his conquests in great detail like Jim was, but Murphy was nothing serious, just a way to pass the long night shifts in Med Bay. She knew it; he knew it, what was the harm?

"So we're supposed to wear bed clothes tomorrow night, right?" He asked tiredly as Kirk ceased his jumping, looking more like a futile child with too much energy before bed than a Starfleet Cadet in the top 97% of his class. It wasn't the most subtle change of subject that Bones could muster but clearly his best friend had the attention span of a Talaxian vapour roach.

"Will you relax? Trust me; tomorrow night when all of the girls are walking around here looking like you've just kicked them out of bed in the morning, you're going to call me a god."

"I'll cut my tongue out before I do any such thing." He replied with the smallest of smirks before climbing into bed, knowing that there was zero chance of getting any rest the following night.

The next night, the boys' dorms were unrecognisable. Hell, the Cadets themselves were unrecognisable in more bared flesh than a weekend at Risa and as he ventured through the packed halls of the dorm that he'd been living in for almost a year now, Bones' eyes scanned the crowd for a familiar face. He wouldn't admit to himself which familiar face he was looking for, mentally giving his subconscious the night off as he drained his cup. He had no idea what the bright green liquid was but it tasted awful, he dropped it onto a shelf as he passed and made a mental note to get another drink, something that was going to hit him fairly qui – ah, bless her. Whatever Jim had to trade that blessed girl, there was a large stash of Romulan Ale and if he wasn't looking for Charlie before he was now, pouring himself a large cup of the violent blue liquid and knowing that would be the end of him. Hey, if he was going to parade around in nothing more than a bed sheet then he was going to do it with inhibitions doused in the illegal Ale. He took a drink and continued to push his way through the crowd, eyes approving most of the female forms as they passed and feeling himself smile when more than a few approved right back.

He would never say it, but Jim was nearing sainthood for this.

Neil and Rodney found him and the three got caught up in the night, talking to people and drinking, things were spiralling out of hand drastically and with the amount of people crammed into the dorm building but there was nothing any of the higher ranking officers on campus could so about it – although it could be certain that there would be a lot of lecturers punishing their hung over classes the next morning. It had pretty much been a given that the most evil of professors would bring out the surprise quizzes and it was an understanding between everyone who stood drinking illegal liquids and wearing sheets (and leaves in some cases) that everyone would fail.

He was outside when he finally saw her and nearly choked in his drink – damn. Charlie was dressed for the occasion in a toga and had foregone shoes; her hair was braided back off her face and fell in waves down her bare back. Loving his blue drink and potentially even Jim for making this happen he walked over, ignoring the conversation that he was trying to have, draping an arm around her shoulders and saying nothing, pretending to be interested in the whatever the guy she was talking to was saying. He glared at Bones but said nothing and Charlie looked up at him and giggled, clearly as inebriated as he was but she still listened to the guy who was talking, dropping an arm around Bones' waist. He wanted more attention than he was getting so he took the wreath of leaves that was positioned on her braids from the top of her head and set it on his nonchalantly (well, as nonchalantly as one could be after ... how many drinks had he had?) and she giggled again, stretching up to try to take it back.

"– As I was saying Charlie, there's an anomaly –" The other guy started and she jumped slightly, having to drop her hold on Bones' partially naked waist to make sure that her sheet didn't slip and reveal something that she didn't want the guy from her Xenobiology class to see. Bones jerked his head back and laughed, holding the wreath to his head when she tried to reach it, her eyes flicking to the other guys' momentarily.

"Yeah? I'm listening."

"No she isn't. You can leave now." Bones replied with a smug grin to the other guy who fumed, stomping off when Charlie pretended to ignore her friend's comments, still jumping and trying to get her wreath back. When the guy had gone she laughed again, a hearty laugh and gripped his arm to steady herself, taking a spare moment to run her thumb over a vein that ran down his perfectly toned bicep before jumping up again.

"Blunt!" She sang and he laughed, bending down to let her take the wreath from his head before pointing to himself as if that explained everything.

"Bones. I believe we've met?"

"Once or twice. Come on Caesar, you can buy me a drink."

"It's an open bar."

"Okay then, you can be my saviour against all of the drunken Cadets who ask me what I'm wearing under my sheet." She grabbed his hand and started pulling him up the path back towards the dorms and his eyes scrutinised her form as he dug his feet into the floor. She still pulled on his arm though it was futile before turning back to him, their hands still joined.

"What _are_ you wearing under that sheet?" He asked with a grin that drove her crazy, she swung their hands.

"Another drink and I might just show you." She started pulling him up the path and after a few dragged steps he rushed behind her and threw her over his shoulder, hearing her shriek and giggle.

"Put me down!" She cried, wiggling and he could feel her skin against his sending his temperature soaring, pushing his way back into the dorm and slapping her ass when a few people looked over, receiving a slap on his ass in reply. Oh, he could most definitely play that game. Making sure that her modesty was covered (he was drunk, but he was still Southern), he carried her through to the makeshift bar that had been set up, slapping her ass every few steps solely for his own enjoyment rather than anything else, feeling her palm on his ass as soon as he did so. He managed to get two drinks as Rodney walked back over, barely batting an eyelid that their friend was slung over McCoy's shoulder, drinking her drink through a straw so that she didn't end up a mess. After a few moments of being arse up and ignored, she slapped Bones' ass once more, resisting the urge to bite it, before he laughed and finally set her down.

The first pair of eyes that she saw were Gaila's, the two girls were at opposite ends of the room, tipsy as all hell but raising their drinks in silent toast to each other and whatever the night would bring. She was standing in front of Bones as Rodney spoke, looking worried about something Charlie didn't care what, as McCoy's arms rested on her shoulders carelessly; she leaned back against his body. Their skin to skin contact was making it hard for her to form a coherent thought but as she slammed back the rest of her drink she realised that a coherent thought wasn't what she wanted right now.

"No, no way. Damn it man! I'm a Doctor, not a golden retriever! Rodney, we're here, we're having a good time –" Bones' voice cut into her thoughts and she tipped her head back to see him, ignoring that the room spun slightly.

"What?"

"Neil passed out at one of the bars up the road." He replied as they both looked back to Rodney, Bones leaned down slightly and let his cheek brush against her temple slightly. It caused her breath to catch, the feel of his rough stubble and the scent of him... she could have that sheet off him in less than five seconds and the thought killed her. Hell, it killed the both of them unknowingly. At Bones' words to Charlie, Rodney nodded fervently and refilled his cup.

"I can't go there – the owner's daughter and I aren't... well, let's just say that I can't go there. He's sobering up but they have to hold him until someone gets him or they call the cops. Can you go and get him?" He asked and Charlie nodded, still leaning against Bones' chiselled torso.

"Of course we can!"

"No! I don't want to babysit him... can't we stay here?" He whined back, looking down at her and screwing up his nose, it took all of her inner sober resolve not to stretch up and kiss him then and there. So much had to be said for the blue Romulan Ale that she was drinking – wasn't it supposed to be the ultimate drunk? Getting drunk meant losing her inhibitions and she was looking forward to losing them with Bones in a sheet, clearly she'd been jipped. But at just after 2am, the night was still young.

"It's not far at all! Come on, let's go on an adventure!" She told him, reaching over and filling two cups of the iridescent blue liquid to the brim, handing one 'for the road' to the guy who still had his nose screwed up. She grinned wickedly and he let her lead him out by the hand, her cup held high over her head so that it wouldn't spill. A couple of guys leered or made sly comments as she passed and although she didn't turn around, their abrupt silence let her know that a pair of ferocious hazel eyes had cut down whoever spoke to her instantaneously. It made her grin and once they were out in the fresh air, he fell into step beside her and dropped his arm back over her shoulders, determined not to let their playful mood slip any.

"You have a deal to uphold," He told her casually as they walked, she looked up at him and burst out laughing when he pretended to be pensive. His hazel eyes were usually greener than anything and tonight were no exception, a cloudy green that gave away how much he'd had to drink in case there was any doubt. She stepped ahead of him as they walked and turned to face him so that she was walking backwards, he felt a slow grin spread itself over his lips and thoroughly enjoyed the scenery in front of him. God bless the Greeks, they like their women baring a lot back then and he was only more than happy to uphold the tradition and respect history.

"Hmm... Did I bet you that Neil would somehow stagger off campus?"

"No,"

"Did we bet that Jim would throw a toga party and proceed to end up in his underwear before most people had arrived?" She teased and he rolled his eyes at that one, unable to wipe the grin from his jaw.

"That'd be a sucker bet."

"Did we bet that Heradee would be a no-show all together? If you'd asked me at the beginning of the year who would be the bigger bookworm – Heradee or Uhura – I would have bet a week in the flight simulator that Uhura would take that cake. Ooh, cake..." She trailed off into a giggle as they walked closer to the bar, it was within sight now and Bones laughed, tipping his head back to glance up at the stars. Knowing that he was going to be up there one day never ceased to amaze him and this time, he smiled rather than glowered at the yellowed dots.

"No, we didn't bet on Uhura. Or Heradee, or the flight simulator." He smiled, looking back down to see her still walking backwards, clearly enjoying toying with him. She knew damn well what he was joking at; he'd gotten her a drink, now she had to show him what she was wearing under her toga. Although he knew already, the thin white sheet hid very little as it was, being flung over his shoulder ass up did very little on top of that.

"Hey!" one guy yelled out suddenly and a few toga clad Cadets spilled from the bar that they were nearing, a couple of Med students that were in a few of Bones' classes and they were okay, but when he had the girl that made it difficult to think with his upstairs brain in front of them he wished that he didn't know that people barrelling towards them.

"McCoy! This is fucking heroic, man! I'm naming my first kid James fucking Kirk – viva la Starfleet!" One guy yelled, tripping over his feet and McCoy laughed, not bothering to try to steady the guy and watching as he fell on his ass.

"You should come into the bar with us! Have a drink!" One of his nursing students told him enthusiastically and when he looked up, Charlie was standing behind the group, still walking backwards with a sly grin on her face. Slowly, her hips swayed and her hands inched the skirt part of her toga up, her eyes not leaving his and although people were drunkenly talking to him, he couldn't hear a word that they were saying over the loud sound of blood rushing from the upper half of his body to fill his lower half.

He watched her as she very slowly slid the cotton over her thighs and he swallowed hard, idly wondering if he could storm over there and take her now without anyone noticing. Just when the hem of the sheet got to the very top of her thighs and her end of the bet would be held up, she crashed into Neil who had been released from the bar and she dropped her makeshift dress that was balled in her fists, letting out a shriek and jumping into his arms. Bones tipped his head back and let out a loud groan that no one really heard amongst their drunken chatter, but as Neil carried Charlie over he knew that their moment, or whatever the hell it was, had been killed. Brutally tortured and then killed.

"Neil, you fucking moron! Have you got cash? You owe Charlie and I a drink." He clapped the other man on the shoulder, hard, and downed the rest of his cup that Charlie had brought 'for the ride', throwing it carelessly into some bushes as they headed towards the bar. As they entered, Charlie paused and looked down at her bare feet, grinning.

"Guess what boys – you just got lucky. I'm not walking on dirty bar floor so one of you has to carry me. Any volunteers?" She asked and was pulled onto Bones' back piggy back style before Neil had a chance to make a move, her arms rested around his neck comfortably as they entered.

"I think everyone can see my underwear." She said into his ear, glancing at the handful of locals and few Cadets in togas who had escaped from the dorm party, he let out a low growl at her voice so soft and beguiling in his ear and her body pressed tightly against his back, her fingers brushing over his chest.

"Except for me."

"Blame Neil. What the – Heradee!" She cried, spying her friend over in the corner with another of her bookworm buddies who avoided most things Jim Kirk and social, the other girl walking over and laughing at her three friends as Neil ordered drinks. Charlie knew that her roommate had a test the next day and believe it or not, thought that the bar would be the quietest place to study with everyone else being on campus.

"Wow. I'm speechless... that's a great look for you. All of you. Having a good night?" She asked as the bartender glared at Charlie who still had her cup from the party in her hand, leaning across the bar.

"Get rid of that or get out!"

"My pleasure Sir!" She replied in a kid-like voice, throwing the remnants back like a shot before throwing the empty cup onto the bar and receiving a dirty look from the guy who snatched it straight away, ignoring that she poked her tongue out at him but got caught.

"Having a good night. You should come back to the dorms with us, it's emptying out now." Bones told her, struggling to not slur his words and he had no idea if what he'd said was true or not but it sounded plausible. He thought.

"I'm sure it was. Charlie? Honey? Where are your shoes?" She asked sounding like a teacher speaking to a first grader and the child in question dissolved into giggles, resting her head on Bones' neck and making him giggle too, his hands wrapped around her thighs. Every now and then he'd let his thumbs brush over the skin, but it was hard to be sly when the room was starting to blur at the edges.

"They didn't go with my outfit! You can't argue with logic, Heradee!" She giggled again as Neil threw his drink back, turning to the other two.

"Let's get back to the dorms!"

"Tally ho!" Charlie cried which made both she and Bones giggle again, he reached behind himself to slap her ass again, swaying slightly as his drinks took further affect.

"You coming?" He asked as he threw his drink back and waited for Charlie to do the same, Heradee shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. Good luck with... well, tomorrow." She shrugged and he laughed, Charlie reached out to pat her friend on the top of her head as they left.

"I can walk now!" Charlie called and tried to wriggle down from Bones' grasp but he held her tightly.

"Nope, not yet." He was definitely slurring his words now he knew it, but beer goggles for the ears were apparent because he knew that he wasn't the only one. He also knew, as they got back to the dorm building to see the party still in full swing that Heradee was right – he would be feeling like absolute shit the next day.

* * *

_For anyone who hasn't seen Karl Urban in toga-esque gear - Google Image him on Xena - he played both Caesar and Cupid. Ignore the blonde hair though! (Karl, darling... really? Blonde like that? Noooo... )_

_Thanks to everyone who has reviewed: FuzzyDeath, RachyDoodle, stargirl0507, Vulcanvamp, Trekky17, thebloodrose - you guys are awesome! _

_This was completely, wholly, 100 billion % inspired by Fett012000 - hun, I was literally typing as soon as I got your review a couple of chapters ago, I kid you not. Thank you and I hope that this does your ideas justice! :)_

_Please, pretty please review - Reviewers get cyber hugs! Xx_


	6. One Man Wrecking Machine

_Hi y'all! _

_Okay, so I haven't posted for the last few days and I'm sorry... Here's another chappie just to tide it over until I can get the next one done - I've got three versions written and hate them all. _

_Disclaimer: Again, I own nada. Except for this cloning farm in my backyard... Bones clones should be ready soon. They're in the oven at the moment. I'm currently taking orders.  
The title of the chapter is taken from a band called Guster and I think it should be renamed 'Jim's Theme'. It's a great song._

_Plug time: Relapse by FuzzyDeath is fantastic. I highly encourage everyone to mosey on over and have a read - don't worry, I'll wait while you do.... See? It's epic. Told you. _

* * *

Jim Kirk wasn't someone that ever looked like he worked hard in classes but somehow always managed to get top grades. The truth was that when he was interested in something he'd put his heart and soul into it, but when he wasn't... well, it kind of fell by the wayside. At least he was interested in more of his classes than not, it was just the not ones that he took issue with. Walking across campus he saw exactly who he was after, throwing a winning smile to a couple of first year female Cadets that passed and then grinning even wider to himself when he heard their giggles and whispers when they were behind him. Charlie was sitting on a bench in the courtyard with her eyes trained heavily on the PADD that she held in her hands, her stylus tapping frequently on the surface. As the tapping got more furious and her nose started to screw up, Jim knew that he was doing her a service by distracting her. In one swift movement, he'd lay on the bench with his legs stretched out and his head in her lap, looking up at her with puppy dog blue eyes that she could mimic perfectly.

"Jim, I don't have time for any of your crap right now." She glanced at him and smiled, one hand still holding onto her PADD as she read over it, the other absently brushing through his hair. He smiled softly at the action and settled himself a little more – he had a stepsister that he never really bothered to get to know but by far, Tex was the closest thing to a sister that he'd ever had. Sometimes he felt sick to his stomach that she was cute yet he had never hit on her... until he remembered that Bones had clearly stuck claim to her the first moment the groups had collided (literally) and it was blatantly obvious to the outside world that it was reciprocated. That gave him a headache within itself – were the two smartest people that he knew really that incredibly stupid? He rubbed a palm over his face and for the billionth time that week told himself not to get involved – all of their friendships would be on the line if he was wrong and got implicated. He had to stay out of it. For now.

"What are you reading?" He asked conversationally and her eyes flicked to his for a mere second before returning to her device, a crease etching across her forehead.

"A story. It's called Relapse. It's awesome and one of the characters reminds me of you a little bit. What do you need Jim? You've got that... look."

"I need to know the ins and outs of the Vulcan chain of command for my Xenohistory paper." He threw her his most charming smile and held up his PADD which she snatched, dropping her engineering one onto his chest.

"Cardassian fuel efficiency - due in three days. Try to make it sound like I wrote it this time, okay? Your spelling was atrocious last time."

"I thought you were going to check it! It'll be fine, will you relax? Hi ladies, enjoying the afternoon?" He smiled as a few female Cadets passed and all eyes turned to the man lying across the bench and when they giggled their replies, Charlie snorted.

"The life of a Starfleet playboy. Seriously Jim, the things that are written about you on the bathroom walls in the ladies room..." She trailed off, he tipped his chin up to meet her eyes and dropped her PADD back onto his chest after making sure that her assignment was legitimate and not like the last time he'd ended up with her entire thesis on warp plasma relays. Admittedly, she'd supplied the ale for the infamous toga party and it had been awesome, so he didn't mind not sleeping for a week.

"Are there diagrams?"

"Only the ones that I drew. They depict you with lady parts." She told him proudly and he burst out laughing, not entirely sure if she was joking or not but he didn't really care. It wasn't like he hid his _admiral_ from the females on campus, pretty much the opposite. For anyone to believe Tex's supposed drawings he'd have to take a vow of chastity for the rest of his years and even then... well, James Kirk didn't like to brag but he thought of himself as gifted and was sure that word had spread throughout the female class. He told his friend so and she too burst out laughing, having to wipe her eyes when tears started to roll down her cheeks, "As long as it's only folklore that you're spreading, I suppose we should all be thankful, right?"

"That's folklore? I've heard you called many things Jim and a storyteller ain't one," Another voice drawled as Bones walked up from behind the two and rounded the bench, dropping his PADD's onto Jim and sitting on the pavement in front of them, stretching his long legs out in the sun.

"Bullshit artist, more like it." Charlie agreed with a grin, Bones leaned back.

"Jackass."

"He-whore."

"Moron."

"Walking horn dog."

"Egoma-" Bones started but was cut off by Jim who was laughing, reaching out to slap his roommate in the shoulder and Charlie in the side of the head.

"I can hear you! There goes my self confidence. Thanks!" He laughed as Charlie continued to run her fingers through his blonde hair.

"Don't worry Jim; I'm sure that you can find a Cadet with low self esteem and loose morals to boost your wilting confidence." She joked, holding her palm up when both boys went to comment, looking like a pair of frat boys, "Stop! I don't need to hear whatever frat pack sexist comment you're going to make!"

"Did you know that she's drawn naked pictures of me in the ladies' room?" Jim asked Bones who laughed heartily, his eyes regarding Charlie and holding hers for a moment.

"Do I want to know how you got a point of reference?"

"Someone had polaroids. Besides, a first year Xenobiology class had just let out and pretty much all the girls were in there to fix their makeup. So there were a lot of Jim's concubines to give me pointers." She replied easily, the two laughing at Jim's expense and after trying to keep a straight face, even the guy in question had to laugh. Anyone else making such comments would end up with a face full of dirt and a black eye but the two that were with him at the moment made cracks about his endeavours in jest so it didn't matter.

"Are we going drinking tonight?" He asked happily, looking up at Charlie and rubbing his hands together, she poked a finger into his chest.

"You've got an engineering assignment to do, Mister."

"So? We go out tonight, I'll do it tomorrow." He replied, McCoy let out a bark of laughter.

"Right. Haven't heard that one before."

"You too Bones. We haven't been out in awhile, we don't want the locals to think that they can stake claim back over the city,"

"Haven't been out in awhile? Jim, we were out three nights ago."

"That's what I said. Okay ladies, I need to go – if we're going out tonight, I've got an engineering paper to get done. Tex, Bones, always a pleasure. Tex, we'll see you tonight at your dorm, 20:00?"

"I don't need you to come and get me Jim. I'm a big girl." She reminded the excitable felon with a smile as he stood, looking down at her with a grin that was normally what persuaded women to do his bidding but it merely made her laugh.

"Let me have an opportunity to come to the girl's dorm, will you?"

"Like you've needed one before." Bones interjected with a roll of his eyes, Jim turned his grin to his best friend and received another eye roll in the process.

"Don't forget, I'm the sucker that's bailed you out of how many girl's rooms in my building at 3am? The next time you're trying to escape and are hanging out the window in your underwear, I'm leaving you to freeze your _admiral_ off." Charlie joked as he leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head, pointing at her as he stepped over to do the same to Bones jokingly, getting walloped in the leg as the three laughed.

"You, beautiful girl, have a paper to write as well. Make it sound like I wrote it too? Last time you used a word that I can't even pronounce."

"Shall I write it on a napkin in crayon then?" Charlie retorted; snickering at her own joke as Jim let out a loud laugh over his shoulder, already crossing the gardens.

"See you both tonight!"

"I worry about his mental health." Charlie told Bones who smiled at her statement, tilting his chin back up to the sun.

"One of those bar fights is bound to knock some sense into him. Maybe."

"He's going to be one of those grown men wearing a bike helmet every day, isn't he?" Her tone was slightly worried as he pulled himself to stand, jerking his head to indicate that she stand too. They had their next class together and it was time to wander over.

"Are you up for tonight?" He asked as they passed a group of second years that he didn't know too well – they were considered the geeks of the Cadet class and he was only half surprised when Charlie pushed a PADD into the chest of one bewildered looking Cadet who looked to be partially of Bajoran descent.

"Vulcan chain of command for Xenohistory. You've got until Tuesday night." She told him, not stopping her stride as they walked, Bones just smiled as the kid took his orders and flicked through the PADD before dropping it into his bag.

"Do I want to know?"

"Let's just say that he needed something of value and is still paying me back. Besides, I've already done that paper for my class. And do you honestly think Jim's going to do mine or palm it off?" She replied, he just nodded.

"True."

***********************

Gaila's eyes were narrowed as she tried to fix a piece of machinery from a turbo lift in the staff quarters, her frustration growing at the object. Why couldn't the Admirals take the stairs? Most of them could use a good workout. She felt someone sit on the table next to her and caught a familiar scent, feeling eyes on her and she knew that without looking that no one else would venture into engineering and sit at her station without so much as a greeting.

"Get off the table, Jim." She told him tiredly, eyes still scanning the pieces of intricate wiring and hearing the man in question open a can of soda.

"How'd you know that it was me?" And he spoke with his mouth full. If he wasn't so good looking and charming, Gaila really would hate him. At least that was what she told herself.

"No one else comes in here. I think our friends are scared of Engineering." This turbo lift had been fried – what on Orion had the first year Cadets done to the relays? They were animals some of them, treating complicated wiring and construction like it was something from the Mess Hall.

"I'm just special then," She knew that he was throwing her that charming grin of his and finally set down the battered project, leaning back in her seat. Yup, as she'd predicted – the boy was turning on the charm.

"I'm not doing your assignment. I don't care what it is, I'm not doing it." She cut him off when he went to protest and he looked pained, waiting for her palm to drop after she held it up to him to emphasize her point before pouting.

"How did you know that's what I was after?"

"Well, we've already slept together - what else was left?"

"Ouch Gaila. Really. Come on! It's a simple paper – Cardassian fuel efficiency. Engineering students can write that stuff in their sleep!" He whined and although it was true, she shook her head and sent copper curls flying.

"I've got my own stuff to do!"

"I'll get Uhura out of your dorm for the night." Fight fire with fire, that was the only thing that the roommates butted heads over so an offer like that, to a girl like this... Jim was hitting low.

"Make it a week."

"I don't major in miracle worker. Three days?" He was going to have to pull out the stops for this one and he had no idea how he'd do it seeing as Uhura was still wary of anything that Jim did but hey, he's cross that bridge when he was about to be pushed off it. Gaila sized him up for a moment before letting out a long sigh and holding out her hand for him to shake. That was too good an offer not to take and by god, it would be hilarious to see Jim try to get Uhura out of their room for three days, especially if her mystery man was 'out of town' like he seemed to be often. Maybe she'd invite Charlie and Heradee around, replicate some popcorn and enjoy the show.

"Deal. Don't screw me over Jim or I'll make sure that every girl in Starfleet hears that you're spreading a nasty case of a Klingon STD. I'm sure Bones can give me the name of something super burn-y."

"I'm sure he can too. I've got to go, coming out tonight?" He asked, handing her the PADD that Charlie had traded with him earlier and sliding from the tabletop, she nodded and waved over her shoulder, picking up the twisted turbo lift piece again.

"Mm hm."

* * *

**_Author's note:_**

_Just a small insight as to their inner-workings at the Academy. I like Gaila, she reminds me of myself a little bit - except for the whole, you know, slut thing. Also, in case you were wondering: The story that Charlie is reading is Relapse by FuzzyDeath. Heard of it before? Wow, I wonder where... Anyhoo, Charlie likes it. She thinks the lead boys are pretty cute. Agree with her? :)_

_A huge, massive thank you to everyone who has reviewed: Fett012000, Trekky17, FuzzyDeath, stargirl0507, Hidden Relevance, uki200, J-awesomeness, Vulcanvamp and RachyDoodle - you hombres are the coolest people ever. Word. _

_Also to those who have added me to their alerts - I hope you guys are liking the story so far! _

_And for the finale: The biggest 'you rock' ever to Fett012000, Trekky17 (I think your non - rain dance has worked hun - we had sunshine today!), FuzzyDeath, stargirl0507 and RachyDoodle whose PM's make me want to refresh my inbox every ten seconds and keep me sane. Really guys, you're my posse and I love getting your messages and hope you don't mind getting mine! _

_I__f I can stop yelling at my screen every ten seconds and get this next chapter figured out, we might just get another post tonight! I've had a lot of Diet Coke so sleep sure as hell isn't likely. _

_Reviewers get their own rainbows! I control the weather and have delusions of grandure, apparently. :) _

_Xx _


	7. White Noise

_Hi!  
__Okay, didn't post straight away like I thought, but I did learn that I can procrastinate like no other. And that I.C.P is hilarious and makes Master Yoda FuzzyDeath late for work. :) _

_Speaking of, have you read her 'Relapse' yet? Her OC will one day rule us all so you'd be best knowing what she's like a head of time.  
And keeping some mint choc-chip ice cream in your freezer. Just a heads up. _

_Sorry if this all reads randomly - this is the first day in years that I haven't had a single drop of caffeine. Aside from climbing the walls, it's what I imagine Pete Doherty feels like every Monday morning.  
Disclaimer: I do not acknowledge that I in anyway know anything of Pete Doherty's life. Nor do I care. Oh, the story? Yeah, it's mine. Anyone want it? Star Trek isn't though.  
The chapter is named after the song of the same title by the band 'The Living End'. It's a great song and I highly recommend giving it a listen. They're awesome live. _

* * *

Throughout their time at the Academy, two things had soon been realised:

1. Starfleet Academy was not the place for a relationship.

2. Jealousy ran like water out of taps and blood through veins.

The Academy wasn't the best breeding ground for relationships. For hook-ups, the Cadets were mostly ripe for the picking, but for anything other than that, things started to get complicated.

Gaila and Jim were the two that everyone equally admired their tenacity and playfully abhorred their antics. Both were the Academy's point of reference for 'been there, done that' and whilst Jim kept his appreciation of the female form (although there were rumours that he'd hooked up with a girl to realise a little too late that she was a Xelian and all Xelians were born Hermaphrodites) to Cadets and local girls, Gaila had a vast appreciation for not only Cadets, but professors, ranking officers and tutors. There was a Vian instructor that none of the girls could look at the same way after Gaila dished too many dirty details one night.

There had been a few times that Charlie had stumbled across Jim getting hot and heavy with a girl, X amount of times that Heradee had ordered her away from their dorm for the night, roughly the same amount of times that Uhura had crashed with Heradee and Charlie because Gaila was entertaining in their dorm - swapping dorms and crashing with other people was more common than anything else between friends and after the first few weeks, Uhura had spent more time at Heradee and her then –roommates. Not to say that it didn't work out well: Heradee's boyfriend lived off campus so Uhura crashed in her bed for most of the nights that Gaila was "entertaining".

There was the time that Charlie been caught making out heavily with another cadet in the PADD lab and Bones, Jim, Neil and Gaila had burst in, she'd heard about it for weeks after. There were the numerous times that Jim would call Charlie or Heradee if he needed an out and was in a girls' dorm, they'd go up and rescue him, there was the time that Bones had nearly missed a surgery because he was in bed with some girl, there was the time that Ken missed a test because he had been tied up (literally) in another dorm, the X amount of times they'd faced each other's flings, girlfriends or boyfriends knowing that they would never make the cut much less be around for another meeting.

Bones had dated a girl named Nancy for a few months before that had ended which everyone had seen coming – she was a civilian who soon found that a relationship with a member of Starfleet, a Doctor of all fields meant that his days were filled with classes, nights filled with Medical Bay duty on campus and weekends spilt between seeing her and his friends. Clearly he had felt the same because after a particularly loud argument late on a Tuesday night in the San Francisco Fall he had broken up with her, citing pretty much the same reasons that went through her mind every time he missed a date or didn't return her messages.

Charlie had dated on and off, nothing really serious but that had suited her fine, she'd dated a Cadet with an engineering focus for a few months but from day one they both knew that it was nothing serious or life altering and Uhura had started "officially" dating Spock, the Vulcan lecturer that she had seen pretty much on her first day. It was a complete secret and Charlotte had covered for the two more than once, not that she minded. Having a Vulcan owing her a favour wasn't a bad thing at all and something that she planned to call in at some point. Heradee had a boyfriend who lived off campus and although they fought almost weekly for some reason it lasted until halfway through her second year. Still, within the crew it was a marathon romance.

Of course, the Academy wasn't a complete sex fest either - they played hard but it meant that it had to be backed up with working hard too. The battle grounds and flight simulations appealed to the adventurous and adrenaline seeking side of most Cadets whilst the classrooms bred geniuses who were more competitive behind a data pad and surrounded by PADDs than they ever would be in any other arena. Classes were stressful; training was strenuous - pair the two together with a bunch of over inflated egos with god complexes and suddenly Starfleet Academy became a cesspool of inferiority complexes, sheer stupidity, arrogance and flared rebellious streaks that were backed up by the smarts that Starfleet both harnessed and grew.

Charlotte Houston was one such girl. She excelled in all of her classes, put in a lot of effort to maintain her exemplary grades – often Bones would stop by the library after his shift at the Medical Bay had finished late to find her slumped over piles of research, either carrying her back to her dorm or coaxing her out of the library with the promise that everything would still be there the next day. She was a top student, was respected by most professors despite her last name (her father had quite a reputation as most of the Starfleet elders told her) and was a favourite of Admiral Archer's. He was one of the first Starfleet Captains and now taught at the Academy which Charlie both respected and didn't understand - he could have any job within Starfleet and instead was the head teacher of Xenopolitics. Sure, it was a great job and he was constantly going off planet and dealing with other Federation stuff, it just wasn't something she could get her head around. From roaming the galaxy to a desk job? Maybe one day she'd understand – for now, she got into heavy debates with him which usually ended in a face off from opposite sides of the classroom but hey, she got away with it and got grades that were as perfect as Archer gave. The few times that she was ordered to leave lectures due to her need to yell and scream and hatred of being proved wrong rarely showed in her grades or work so she was content to leave class forcibly every now and then.

There was one thorn in her side academically though, in the form of Lucy Kellaway. A Cadet like Charlie from a well known Starfleet family like Charlie, the girl was constantly nipping at her heels in class rankings and grades, trying to steal her thunder. There was a mutual dislike between the two that no one ever spoke of and face to face the girls were nothing but smiles... but anyone who knows girls knows that smiles really don't mean much at all. It didn't help that one of Lucy's friends and Gaila were constantly at each others' throats so to avoid drama, the two cliques simply steered clear of each other.

All until one cold February night in Charlie's second year. Scattered around the bar, enjoying a night off with no pretentions of stresses, Charlie glanced around the large room idly in an attempt to find the eyes of one of her friends, her eyes resting on Bones, who was wrapped around a brunette in the corner. It took her a moment to realise who... he making out with Lucy. She stopped breathing for a moment and couldn't avert her eyes, to see one of his hands pulling her hips closer to his, the other hand tangled in her dark hair... sure, Bones could kiss whoever he wanted, she'd dealt with him having a girlfriend for a few months as well as various other hook ups, but _her_? Gaila appeared at her side and followed her friend's paled expression, choking on her drink.

"I'm not that drunk but – is that...? Oh my god." She murmured and Charlie managed to pull her eyes away, trying not to look shocked or like she wanted to do any combination of scream, cry or throw up.

"I need a drink." She murmured and clearly the other girl didn't hear, her eyes narrowing to slits.

"Oh, _hell _no!" Gaila suddenly cried, diving forward off her chair and Charlie caught her, standing in between the, oh god, _couple_ and a very pissed off looking Orion who couldn't wipe disgusted look from her face and was snarling.

"Hey. Hey! It's fine! He's free to see anyone he wants! We're not together! I'm single, he's single – yes, you know that I think he's cute but so what? Gaila, I think you're cute but it doesn't mean anything." She joked weakly, Gaila's eyes still burning holes over her shoulder.

"That's so low. Ooh, that is so incredibly low! Her?! She's a wench!"

"Gaila!"

"She knows it. Oh, I will cut her!" The girl started forward again and Charlie burst out laughing, holding her back.

"It's fine, I promise! Come on, let's get drunk and make out with random boys." She tried distraction but her friend was furious which was oddly touching.

"Apparently it's the theme for the night! Seriously Charlie, he can't do this! With her?! To you?! Come on, just let me go over there and make some cutting remark about how he's scraping the barrel with a cheap imitation of you. Please?"

"No! Gaila, they're just kissing. There's no harm in that! I'll let you go ape shit when we get the wedding invite, okay? Until then, let's just drink. Okay?" The two girls ordered shots and threw them back, to sedate Gaila and to get the image out of Charlie's mind, both glaring at the small glasses before slamming them down on the bar, now empty.

"Another!" Was the cry in unison and Gaila's arm linked through Charlie's, "Okay, here's the plan. We're going to get the hell out of here, find another place and proceed with the drunken debauchery. I don't want to be here if it's going to breed... that. Even I have standards. This one's on the house, right Joe?" She called to the bartender who dropped two more shots onto the bar and saluted, her eyes caught a point over Charlie's shoulder and she shook her head slightly, her eyes betraying a simmering anger. With a start, Charlie realised that she had made eye contact with one of the two people who were driving her to the bottle and pulled on her friends' arm, nudging her shot.

"Gaila! One, two, three!" They knocked them back and upended their glasses, the room spun slightly when Charlie stepped back but that was a good thing at the moment.

"Let's get out of here. Where's Heradee?"

"She's with some of the other girls. Don't worry about her, we don't need someone asking you every ten seconds how you are and telling you that making out with that adorable Cadet in navigation who you always wink at is a bad idea. I love her, but you need the devil on your shoulder, not the angel right now."

"I'm fine though!" Charlie protested as they started for the door but Gaila quickly caught her shoulder, spinning her around.

"Let's use the back way." She urged and Charlie felt her stomach sink.

"They're at it again?"

"Get a room!" Her normally polite friend roared as both girls burst out laughing, ducking through the bar towards the back door.

"Gaila!"

"Can't help it – I'm a make out heckler. If people are going to do it in public, no matter how drunk they are, I'm going to give them a review and a commentary." She replied with a grin, grabbing Charlie's hand and pulling out into the cold night air.

*******

Her feet ached almost as much as her head and when she managed to open her eyes, the small beams of sunlight that had managed to slip through the blinds felt like pins being stabbed into her eyeballs. Pulling her pillow over head as slowly as she could, Charlie tried to piece together the night before but any movement or any thought of movement made her stomach lurch. She could remember Bones and Lucy, clearly whatever she had consumed hadn't killed off the brain cells that had seen that image no matter how hard she tried, she and Gaila had gone dancing, drinking, she'd ended up hooking up with the blonde helmsman – slowly, she peeked out from under the pillow and felt her stomach lurch for all the wrong reasons as her brain woke up and she felt the unmistakeable weight of someone else in bed with her, felt the unmistakeable touch and heard the unmistakeable sounds of said blonde helmsman snoring peacefully. And they were in his room. Shit.

She slid out of bed and slid her pillow where her body had been, pulling on her clothes in record timing and trying to stay quiet as the helmsman flung his arm over the pillow and snuggled into it, she stooped to pick up her shoes and ran for the door, barrelling into the hallway and pausing to make sure that she didn't hurl then and there. Boy, did Gaila have a lot to answer for. As quick as she could, Charlie ran down the stairs (the turbo lift would be a disaster right now) to the bottom floor of the boy's dorm, wiping her hands over her face and trying her hair back to try and wake herself up. As she tiptoed out of the dorm building she heard a snicker and turned to see the two worst possible people, one looking delighted, the other looking ill.

"Well, well. Have a good night?" Jim asked and his delighted voice shot to the spot in her head that was pounding worse than any other, making her wince.

"I left my purse... just came back to get it." She tried and this only made Jim laugh harder. After a moment of complete humiliation she turned and headed back towards her dorm, the sound of Jim's taunting getting closer as both boys fell into step either side of her.

"Who was he?" Bones asked, his voice tight. She glared up at him and smiled tiredly, noticing that he didn't look hung over. Bastard.

"Who was she?"

"I slept in my own room last night. Alone."

"After we saw you with your tongue down Kellaway's throat, of course. Morning all! Sleep well?" Galia exited the boys' dorm too and wandered over, Charlie smiled legitimately.

"I put myself in your hands last night Gaila and you did not disappoint."

"Apparently neither did Helmsman dimples! Look at that bite mark! Damn, that is fine work... good colour, depth, size... " She murmured appreciatively, running her fingers over a bite mark that was apparent on Charlie's neck, the girl flushed scarlet and slapped her palm over the space on her skin.

"A helmsman? Really? I don't see you with navigation Tex. Try a different department," Jim told her, earning a glare from the other three people and having taken to calling Charlie 'Tex' after their first meeting when she'd said "Houston, as in Texas", for some reason it had stuck.

"There's plenty of weekends to do so," Gaila shot back and fervently, Charlie wished that the ground would open up and swallow her whole.

*******

He needed his coffee. Badly. He was standing and waiting for the replicator to do its work and give him some reprieve from this disastrous morning and when it didn't, slammed a palm into the terminal along with a few choice words.

"It's going a little slow today," A voice told Bones cheerfully from behind and when he had gathered himself enough to not throw the apparent morning person out of the Mess Hall and straight into a brick wall, he turned and glared at the small Cadet, a boy with parted hair and shined shoes.

"I hadn't noticed. Moron." He snapped before turning back and slamming his palm into the terminal again with a string of highly undignified words, seeing someone pass in a red shirt, signifying that they were a ranking officer in the engineering department.

"You! This needs fixing. Now." He barked at the ensign who looked perplexed at being glared at so ferociously in the middle of the normally calm Mess Hall. "Don't just stand there! Come here and fix this damn thing!" He didn't give the engineering dolt a chance to say anything but the other man's deer in the headlights expression told Bones all that he needed to know – that the Academy was being facilitated by this simple minded hick and plenty more just like him. He stalked out of the Mess Hall and towards Medical Bay knowing that the replicators would have to work there – no one wanted a handful of pissed off Doctors and Nurses coming off long, graveyard shifts without caffeine so whenever the replicators went down, there was an engineering team on their doorstep instantaneously.

He was mad and he didn't know why... well, he did but it had nothing to do with him. He blamed Gaila – that girl was a bad influence. Hell, she had slept with Jim for Christs' sake, what did that say about her sanity? And Charlie... he was at a loss for words. He'd drunkenly hooked up with Lucy Kellaway, but so what? Is that what Gaila was being snide about? He was a free man, but a free man with closeness to a girl should never have to see Charlie doing the walk of shame from, what was his name's dorm. What was it that Gaila had called the man whose testicles were soon to be removed? Helmsman... Dimples? Great, now the Orion girl was making cutesy nicknames. Just great.

In sick bay, he typed his access code into the panel on the wall in the staffroom to get a copy of the duty roster, his mind still whirring angrily. He was mad, yes. But at what exactly? He was Leonard McCoy, did he honestly need a reason to be mad? No, not really. But he was and he knew why and that made him even more mad because damn him, damn her, they were both free to do what they wanted with whom they wanted – why had Gaila given him the eye last night? Sure, she and Lucy weren't the best of friends, but so what? He wasn't friends with Helmsman Dimples and ... He needed coffee.

This replicator worked immediately and briefly, he wondered if he could skip his classes and stay in the Bay all day. He didn't have to answer to any of his friends and their social politics and knowing that Charlie had that... that _bruise_ on her neck made him ill. How could she let a man brand her like that? He blamed Gaila. Then he blamed Helmsman Dimples and then he smiled when he saw that all of the Navigation crews were due for their physicals within the next week and felt the first twist of pleasure for the day – a simple dropped scalpel here, a simple misunderstood reading there and he could remove said dimples and have the sucker cut open across his surgical table within minutes. Or give him a simple case of Vulcan flu – nothing serious, just a few sweats and pounding temples for a week. And then of course, there was the excessive bloating.

Bones grinned to himself as the doors to Medical Bay swished open and a guy in Cadet Reds walked in, cradling his arm. Blood was clearly visible but it was barely anything, causing McCoy to roll his eyes. He hated it when people came into the infirmary for mere bumps and bruises. Why bother? What was he supposed to do? Offer sympathy and call the three hundred pound Cadet's Mom to inform her of her candy-ass son's scratch? No. He was there to patch up the people who got injured in real battles, not cure cases of food poisoning from one of the crappy restaurants and take out places that were based around campus.

"Gardener! The next time you don't plug in the tri corders, you're doing all the first year physicals!" He yelled across the infirmary that only had a handful of patients and the Doctor at the other end of his blast nodded.

"Sorry Sir." Technically, Gardener was on par with McCoy but the fact that Bones was a better Doctor than he was as well as being infinitely scarier made one man far superior to the other. They both knew that. Plus, the fear in the other Doctor's eyes restored some form of order to McCoy's universe.

********

Bones and Lucy Kellaway. Sure, he'd slept alone last night but Charlie had still seen them making out, trying to block the image from her mind but it didn't work, her eyes squinting shut a few times before she realised that she was getting curious looks from other Cadets in the gardens. Letting out a quiet growl and throwing her hair over her shoulder haughtily, she stomped off to her class, passing a replicator and punching in her access code with more force than necessary.

"Pear." She barked, fervently hoping that the computer wouldn't question her choice of snack, she'd once gotten into an argument with that mocking voice when she'd ordered a bowl of Cocoa Pops. But Vulcans ate pears apparently and of course, the computer knew better than to mock who was more than likely a Vulcan and the green, oddly shaped fruit appeared on the plate. She snatched it and stormed off again, narrowly missing a group of first year Cadets who were carrying a project of some sorts through the Mess Hall.

"Watch where you're going!" One yelled after her and she had an urge to hurl the pear at them but settled for flipping the bird over her shoulder, before turning to yell at them.

"Don't carry your fucking craft corner through here!"

"This is an engineering project, genius!" Was the cry back and she glared at the one who had the gall to talk back to her, fixing him with an unblinking stare, eyebrows raised slightly. He squirmed immediately like she knew that he would before she uttered a comeback, her voice low but cool as ice.

"Make your birdhouses elsewhere, children." She still glared at them as they hurried away, a slight smirk twisted over her lips. Hey, maybe Bones had something going with the whole 'fear me, I'm an ass' thing. At the thought of him her bad mood returned and clouded her sight, giving her the force to storm the rest of the way to her class.

She leaned heavily on the oak door of the lecture theatre that she had her next class on, letting it open and shuffling her feet along with it. Starfleet kept the building in his old, historical glory and the huge oak doors that covered the corridors along with the paintings of heralded heroes were obvious reminders. She was concentrating on the pear in her hand and heard a loud whistle when she walked into the room, snapping her head up and smiling at Jim who was laughing.

"Heads up Tex, you're going to bump into something." He told her loudly as she narrowly missed hitting her leg on the lecturers' desk at the front of the room, said lecturer looking up momentarily from grading papers.

"Cadet Kirk, keep it down." Even the lecturer sounded bored and Jim just shrugged, his legs stretched over the seat in front of his. Charlie felt herself grin – this was the class that she, Jim, Bones, Gaila and Neil shared and she looked forward to it. It was also the class that she had to do a lot of work outside of class for because she never got anything done in it. People were already sitting along either end of the row of seats that held her regular one so she walked along the row in front, stepping easily over the chair in front of hers and falling into the one next to Jim, knowing that Gaila would soon take the chair that she had just climbed over, Neil next to Gaila and Bones on Charlie's other side. It was their ritual.

"This isn't a jungle gym, Cadet Houston." A tired voice rang out and she settled herself, pulling out a data pad and resisting a smart comeback, settling for a quick smile to the harsh eyes at the front of the class before turning to Jim.

"Why are you here early? Everything okay?"

"Yeah, class before just let out early. I went to get some food but... well... "

"A posse of your discarded harem?"

"I think one of them knows voodoo." He grinned, taking her pear from her hands and taking a large bite before handing it back.

"I have to hand it to you – for all of your endeavours, you sure do end up with some crazies." She agreed with him, finishing her pear quickly and climbing back over the seat in front to drop the core into a bin, settling back into her seat as Bones and another Cadet stormed in, followed closely by Neil. It was clear that Bones was in a foul mood and stormed across the front of the room with long, quick strides, his eyes glaring harshly at the guy that he'd entered with. She couldn't be sure, but Charlie could have sworn that he was muttering under his breath.

"Everything okay?" She asked when he sat next to her; he tapped a data pad furiously on the edge of the desk that was folded next to his chair.

"People are fucking idiots, absolute fucking morons." He glowered, his eyes still glaring at the guy who was now sitting towards the front of the classroom with a few other Cadets, he glanced over his shoulder at Bones whose expression darkened even more with eye contact.

"You're an imbecile." Their friend snapped loud enough for the other guy to heard and the lecturers' head snapped up but he decided against saying anything. This highly amused Jim who let out a laugh at the entire situation, shaking his head. Apparently he wasn't the only one who had to watch out for voodoo and people he'd pissed off.

"Hey. What?" A firm hand on his forearm snapped Bones from the plans that he was mentally making of draining that incompetent idiot of all of his blood and he switched his glare to Charlie who looked slightly worried. She moved her hand and it rested gingerly in her lap, folded tightly with the other and he wondered briefly why she looked uncomfortable, a thudding pain in his chest that he had learned to ignore at her touch.

"Neuorsciences just then? That idiot turns off the neural impulses and nearly kills one of our projects." That was the tip of the iceberg but relaying every detail of the sorry excuse for a Doctors' monumental cockup wasn't something that he wanted to list right now. They both had a shift in Med Bay afterwards so he could go through it with said imbecile then, when he'd had a chance to mull over it and wasn't going to randomly burst into insults with every second word. Every fifth, possibly, but second was excessive.

"By projects you mean nurses?" Jim asked with a sly grin and McCoy rolled his eyes, raking his hair off his face and shaking his head at his friends' one track mind.

"No nurses were hurt in the making of my experiment."

"Thank god. Some of them are nice finds." The fact that Jim looked visibly relieved made Charlie laugh quietly, waving to Gaila who bounced in and smiled lecherously at the professor. That action made Charlie drop her hand, rolling her eyes – sitting near Jim and Gaila, she felt like she needed a hazmat suit.

"You mean hinds."

"Don't encourage him." Bones muttered and the two quickly exchanged watery smiles as Gaila flopped into her seat in front of Charlie and next to Neil.

"Hi darlings! So, are we on for tonight? There's a party off campus – look!" She squealed as she unfolded a flier and held it up, Jim snatched it.

"For a college party? Really Gaila, that's a little below Academy standards, isn't it?"

"Whoa, look out – Jim Kirk is suddenly a party snob. Are you feeling okay, honey?" Was the comeback as the Orion girl reached up to press a hand to Jim's forehead, he batted his eyelashes at her.

"Trying to feel me up?"

"Throwing yourself at me again?"

"How about you two play nice? I'm in. Bones?" Neil asked, used to playing referee when things started to escalate, the Doctor shook his head.

"Can't. I've got plans." He looked uncomfortable and Charlie frowned at him, tipping her head to the side slightly.

"Med Bay?"

"After this class. No, I've, uh... got a date." He mumbled and it caused the other four of his friends to turn to him, Jim held his hand up over Charlie's head for a high five.

"My man! Is she hot? Is it that cute nurse that just came back from Vulcan? If not, can you hook me up?"

"Damn it Jim, I'm not your pimp! No it isn't. Now drop it." He hated being in this situation - he was sitting next to Charlie for Christs' sakes. It was just weird.

"Who is she?" Neil asked, completely ignoring Bones' instructions to stop talking about it and receiving a narrowed pair of hazel eyes that looked as though they could tear him to shreds for posing such a question.

"Yeah Bones – who is the lucky lady?" Gaila's voice was light and its usual musical tune but Charlie could hear the slight tightness as she spoke whilst she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole for the second time that day. Not that Bones wasn't free to date, he was, but... it was just not something she liked to hear. However, she was intrigued to see who had booked an exclusive audience with her Doctor though the sinking feeling in her stomach was waiting simply to be proved right.

Gaila was unearthing the competition and would more than likely have a plan devised by the end of class how to eliminate the threat. It was the way it had gone in the past and Charlie had shot down any plan that involved her being other than completely cool with the situation but bless her, Gaila never failed to try.

"Lucy. Lucy and I are having dinner." McCoy finally relented and Charlie felt like she'd been slapped in the face and it took a moment to get her features under control and arrange them into a mask that said that it didn't affect her.

"Lucy Kellaway? She's cute." Jim mused and Gaila's eyes quickly met Charlie's and she managed a small giggle though both girls knew that it was forced.

"You're right. She is very cute. Have a good time; we'll fill you in on everything that happens at the party tonight."

"Please don't."

"Nonsense! You don't want to know about how many girls slap Jim when he makes one of his lame lines at them? How many frat boys Neil can out drink? How many cute college boys make a move on Charlie?" She asked innocently and Charlie burst out laughing, more at her friends' gall than anything else.

"No, I'm good without those facts Gaila. Thanks anyway." McCoy's voice was tight now and the girl shrugged, turning to face the front as the lecturer stood, before she quickly leaned back, looking up at the row of Bones, Charlie and Jim upside down.

"We're going to have to beat them away with sticks, Charlie! It's going to be hilarious!" She grinned wickedly before lifting her head. Charlie laughed to herself and tapped her datapad thoughtfully, shaking her head again. Cadet Kellaway? Oh, how much she hated that sorry excuse for a female.

* * *

_**Authors Notes:**_

_Sorry, it was a little long. I hated writing this chapter, it was in pieces and.. ugh. But it had to be done. On the upside, Gaila went a little ghetto - she's fastly becoming my favourite. Anyhoo, on with the good stuff! _

_A huge, massive shout out to everyone who reviewed the last chapter: FuzzyDeath, Hidden Relevance, stargirl0507, Trekky17, Vulcanvamp, J-awesomeness, RachyDoodle, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar.  
And again, to the coolest people whose PM's always crack me up: FuzzyDeath, Trekky17, stargirl0507, J-awesomeness, RachyDoodle.  
Also, the ghost readers - I hope you guys are liking the story so far, too!_

_* Have you read Trekky17's 'I'm Sorry'? It's really great - and just been finished so it can be read straight through without sending threatening reviews for cliffhanger chapters! :)_ *

_I've got the next chapter all set out, right here in a pretty little folder... reviews get it sooner! I'm running out of things to bribe you guys with, so... *falls to knees and pleads* Please review! PLEASE!_

_Xx_


	8. Stuck in the Middle With You

_Sorry about the lateness of this post - it's been a long few days... _

_My sincerest apologies to the blonde guy whose name escapes me but I referred to as 'Draco' all last night. You are not a murderer and I do not want to do naughty things to your wig laden father. Oh Christ. _

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek... and I can't be bothered finding a funny way to say so.  
The chapter title is taken from the song of the same title by Stealers Wheel. Does anyone care about this? Or can I name my chapters whatever? Maybe I waste too much time looking for the songs. Hmph. Ooh, hello bitchy CaffeineKid, glad you could join the party. *throws confetti* _

_Anyway, here 'tis:_

* * *

It had been a few weeks since Bones and Lucy had started dating and so far Charlie had managed to stay cool with it. Gaila, not so much, but at least now she was refraining from hissing at the girl and her friends if they happened to pass in the halls. Bones himself had kept Lucy separate from his friends – their dates were to places that his friends didn't frequent, still making an effort to hang out with his friends as much as possible. Really, not much had changed, except for now if he wasn't with the crew, it couldn't be surmised that he had a shift in Medical as easily.

The night before, Charlie had been called out to pick Heradee up from what the other girl described as her 'most worse night ever... but with a few perks' and at breakfast the next morning was bouncing on the spot in anticipation of sharing with Uhura and Gaila, knowing that the news that she was going to share was quite possibly the funniest thing the two would hear all year and go down in the books for one of the all time greatest reveals between the friends.

The girls took their breakfasts and walked their way through the sea of table in the Mess Hall, Heradee trudging behind the other three, her skin a sickly green and flinching with every noise that was made in the large and slowly filling galley. As the four filed through a tight squeeze created by chairs pushed out back to back past another table of girls in Cadet Reds, one was sobbing into another's shoulder, tissues clutched in her hand and faint cursing could be heard, along with traditional female sympathetic phrases.

"Twenty dollars says that's a product of Jim," Gaila said loudly over her shoulder and unknowingly without tact. At her words all of the girls from the table glared up at them with murderous eyes and it was clear that the infamous Kirk had struck again. The girls' loud sobs could still be heard even as they found a table and sat; Charlie rolled her eyes at the sound.

"Seriously, you'd think by now that they'd know what he's like."

"But he's so pretty, if you had the chance, wouldn't you tap it?" Gaila replied sarcastically and also with a roll of her eyes - Jim Kirk had been a novelty when she had taken the challenge, but now? Not so much.

"Okay, spill it you two – Heradee has a hangover to boot and you've been lording it over us that you know something of monstrous proportions. Give it up," Uhura urged Charlie who gloated, Heradee let out a low moan in pain and suffering. Charlie smiled at her friend and felt her pain, but this, what had unfolded the night before was too great not to share.

"Right. Yes. So, at about 3am this morning, I get a com from the Starfleet Brig asking if I can come up and pick up our one and only country girl here –"

"Please stop." Heradee begged quietly, as though it hurt to speak and although she knew that Charlie would tell their best friends of the events that had unfolded, seeing their gleeful and shocked expressions wasn't what she wanted right now. What she did want was a cheeseburger and a bucket. Uhura and Gaila's jaws had dropped and both pairs of eyes rounded in shock, glancing between Charlie and Heradee searching for traces of a joke between the two. Heradee in the brig? It was ludicrous.

"Shush, felon!" Gaila barked in a deep Southern voice that made Uhura and Charlie giggle, even Gaila herself did at he own joke.

"You need to stop watching old talk shows. Jerry Springer has to be bad for your health." Uhura replied in a sensible voice if not slightly mocking, the Orion girl took a bite of toast and sneered.

"I'll do what I want." She grumbled as Charlie continued, swilling her juice in its glass absentmindedly, her grin equal parts wicked and wide.

"And there sits Heradee, drunk with the beginnings of a hangover setting in and a few other Starfleet delinquents and I'm told that she was caught –"

"Keep your voice down if you insist on humiliating me. And get that food away from me, it smells awful. I'll puke." The girl in question murmured, glaring at Charlie and pushing Uhura's plate away, the second girl giggling quietly at her friends' discomfort. Heradee leaned her forehead on the table top and concentrated on taking deep, even breaths though she idly wondered if she was dying.

"What did she get done for? Come on, unveil the surprise!" Gaila urged Charlie who smiled smugly an entertained the two hanging on her words and the one person who was concentrating on not puking in the middle of the Mess Hall. If her antics hadn't earned Heradee a reputation then blowing chunks at breakfast sure would.  
Charlie's heralded audience watched with anticipation and she couldn't help but feel like a ringmaster in a circus. Hell, that pretty much summed up her Starfleet career to date.

"Our darling Heradee here was busted by the local police and handed over to Starfleet Academy for _public indecency_. Girl was having a little nightcap on the sand." She told Uhura and Gaila languidly and there was a moment of stunned silence as the two looked too shocked to speak; only Heradee's muffled voice could be heard.

"I hate you all."

"Tramp-o-_lina_! High five!" Gaila screeched loudly and more than a few people glanced over, the girl sobbing behind them still audible.

"I think I'm dying."

"Heradee! I'm... oddly proud. Who was he?" Uhura asked as the three exchanged delighted grins, glad that she was the one in pain and questioning her morals for once and not the other way around like it usually was. The star of the hour's head was still resting on the table top and she shook her head minutely, her arms reaching up and folding over the top of her head, matting into her hair.

"A guy."

"That's good, or things may have gotten a little awkward. Is he Starfleet? I didn't bother to look at the other criminals when I bailed you out." Charlie couldn't keep the giggle out of her voice and had to clamp a hand over her mouth along with Uhura to stop from laughing hysterically.

"I hate you."

"It wasn't the ex, was it? Honey, really?" Uhura asked, frowning but her features cleared when Heradee shook her head slightly.

"No, he's Starfleet. I don't think you guys know him."

"Oh my god! It's Jim, isn't it?! You slept with Jim!" Gaila cried loudly and Heradee looked up, glaring at the Orion girl.

"No! I didn't!" She yelled back hoarsely and the sobbing girl at the table near them let out another loud wail at the apparent overheard comments.

"Who was it?" Charlie urged completely out of curiousness and finally, Heradee sighed, looking up at the ceiling and wincing.

"My Astronomy tutor, Professor Cook." At this quiet admission the other three girls let out yelps and dove up, it was a well known fact that Professor Paul Cook was a total and utter babe. Uhura and Charlie high fived and whilst Charlie danced happily, Gaila jumped up onto her chair and was dancing obscenely which cracked the other two up. Heradee merely sat there with her jaw in her palms, elbows on the table and waited for them to finish.

"Okay, we're good. Gaila! Get down!" Charlie giggled as the three sat down, Uhura having to pull Gaila down by the wrist when the girl was slapping random parts of the anatomy that weren't really there.

"Hera, I don't say this enough – I am in utter awe of your sexual prowess." The Orion told Heradee who groaned and buried her face in her hands at that, Uhura grinned.

"The only thing worse than being picked up from the brig at 3am is Gaila being awed by your sexual prowess?"

"I'm so ashamed. I'm going to have a record now!" She wailed and Charlie waved her hand, dismissing her fears.

"No, you won't. I had a chat with the Lieutenant at the Brig last night. That reminds me, Gaila, you have a date tonight." She smiled sweetly at the girl who pulled a face but suddenly perked up.

"With Professor Niceass? Hell yeah!"

"With the Lieutenant who isn't going to file any reports that Heradee was taken in, dumbass. Be ready at 19:00 hours."

"Okay pimp. See how much I love you?" She batted her eyelashes at Heradee who looked relieved, leaning over to wrap both girls in a hug before jerking away and holding up her palm, looking green.

"Fire in the hole!" Both Gaila and Charlie cried delightedly, Uhura merely rolled her eyes and stirred her tea.

"The two of you are so uncouth."

"That sounds so dirty, Uhura."

"Dirty talk this early? Yup, this is our table." Neil smiled as he and Jim wandered over and sat, Heradee shot the girls a glare that clearly told them to shut up. Jim saw the sobbing girl over Charlie's shoulder and grimaced, reaching over and snatching her sunglasses before sliding them on in what everyone surmised was an apparent attempt to go incognito.

"Hmm. So, I have juice right here, but you know what I really wanted?" Gaila asked innocently, staring into her glass and immediately Charlie's giggles escaped, Uhura's caught on and Heradee groaned and dropped her head back onto the tabletop.

"What was it that you really wanted, Gaila?"

"What's that drink called that has vodka, peach schnapps and Cranberry, orange and pineapple juice?" She asked and Uhura rolled her eyes with a wide smile, Heradee let out a minor groan and Charlie cut off another piece of pancake.

"Why, I believe that it's called Sex on the Beach, Gaila."

"Hmm. Fancy that." She murmured and Charlie and Uhura dissolved into a fit of laughter, managing to pull themselves together when Heradee raised one hand, flipping them the bird.

"Have we missed something?" Neil asked and Gaila grinned, twirling a copper curl around her finger.

"Just some drunken debauchery... and for once, Charlie and I are completely innocent!" She proclaimed as Bones headed over, pausing before he sat down with a glare to Jim who looked up at his roommate innocently but with girl's sunglasses on as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

"I don't want to know." He shook his head and sat, reaching over and snagging the piece of toast that Charlie had left on her plate.

"Hey, can you do me a favour?" She asked into his ear quietly and he smiled, pretending that her proximity so early in the morning didn't affect him.

"Depends what it is."

"There's a rumour that you can cure a bad hangover in Med Bay."

"You look fine to me."

"Not me, Heradee." She told him quietly and he glanced over to see the girl curled up into a ball, her skin looking greyer than green now and he felt her pain. They'd all been there.

"Bring her over after 09:00 hours, I'm in then." He relented with a smile, whatever had happened to Heradee the night before she sure as hell was paying for it now and wasn't as seasoned at hosting such torment as the others sitting at the table. Charlie grinned and took a sip of his coffee in trade for the toast, her arm brushing his.

"You're the best."

"You owe me." He replied, his voice thick with implications and it made her blush slightly and though she knew that she was dating Lucy, her mind could still entertain the idea that he could be flirting, right? Of course not. He was Bones, the guy with the hazel eyes that glared green into hers when he was tired or threw her that trademark smirk that could melt the polar icecaps and her knees in one hit. He was her... friend. And Lucy was his... girlfriend.

And Lucy, right now, was her arch enemy and in her sights.

Breakfast finished and Charlie leaned over to Heradee who hadn't lifted her head from the tabletop since the boys' arrival, eliciting a few glances and furrowed brows of curiosity only to be met with the other three girls waving their hands and shaking their heads dismissively as though not to worry about their friends' coma-esque state and the fact that until Charlie had thrown Gaila into the deal, she was going to have an offence for public indecency on her permanent record.

"Hera? Come on honey, we're getting you cured." Charlie's voice was quiet and low, she knew how bad her friend was feeling and that high pitched voices would feel like a drill screaming through her skull.

"Cured? You're going to kill me? Put me out of my misery?"

"Bones has a hangover cure in Med Bay."

"That's illegal." That got Heradee to lift her head and Uhura smiled sympathetically at the poor girl who swayed with the movement of righting herself.

"You're not one to harp about illegal activities just yet. Besides, it's Bones."

"Right. If Charlie asked, he'd cut off my leg."

"Fine, stay hung over all day. See if I care." Charlie replied, affronted slightly and held her palms up in surrender; Gaila threw her a wicked grin.

"Show some cleavage and get me some Vicodin."

"He's not a drug runner, or a... he's dating Lucy and we're due in Med Bay now, Hera. Come on, the nice doctor will make you all better." She mocked as the other girl struggled to stand; it took a few moments for the room to stop spinning and the motion in her stomach to settle enough to shuffle outside.

"The nice doctor with the nice ass." Gaila licked a couple of her fingers and grinned innocently at Charlie who couldn't disagree, merely shrugging with a smile of her own as she helped the ailing Heradee out of the Mess Hall and towards Medical Bay.

*******

He'd started his shift with a blast at one of the male nurses who had forgotten to lock the doors to the pharmacy after he'd restocked it – although there was always a shift in the infirmary, incidents like that were sloppy and inexcusable. Any fool could get in there and end up on his surgical table within minutes. Or worse, the morgue. He'd snapped and snarled and pushed the nurse to the verge of tears with a tirade that the pharmacy was to be handled by those with access and was to be treated as the heart of the infirmary itself – with diligence, respect and of course, due care.

And then he stalked into said pharmacy and concocted the forbidden hangover cure that Starfleet banned.

No one would be the wiser and it wasn't a secret that the liquid was doled out on the sly when needed - hell, the amount of Captains and Admirals that had been in during his shifts to cure whatever it was that they'd bought from Charlie was astronomical. It was situations like that which made it plausible and not so farfetched that Jim could be captain like he wanted. Hell, if the Admirals were getting wasted and begging to be cured illegally then by god, Jim Kirk would fit right in.

A glimpse of Cadet Reds out of the corner of his eye alerted him to Heradee and Charlie's arrival – both girls looked tired but Heradee looked... well, not great. Charlie caught his eye and smiled softly which he would have felt to his toes had he not been worried for the other girl.

"I'm so sorry about this." Charlie told him quietly as he led them over to a bio bed and pulled the sheet around for privacy.

"Don't worry about it. You're indebted to me now though." He smiled wryly as she steadied Heradee who looked up at Bones with large eyes that were bloodshot.

"I think I'm dying."

"Let me scan you. Christ woman, what the hell were you doing out on a Tuesday night? You of all people?" He asked irritably as he scanned her with a tri corder and saw that the alcohol in her system was more than significant, at a level that was baffling to him – why her, why then? She looked so torn up that his Doctor side kicked in and he caught Charlie's eye, jerking his head silently to indicate that he needed to speak with her out of earshot.

"We'll be back in a moment, okay?" Charlie's voice was soft and sweet, at a slightly lower tone and Bones recognised it as the voice that she used when he or Jim weren't feeling at their greatest. He led her back into the infirmary and wheeled around to face her, seeing that she too looked tired but not nearly as much as his patient.

"What the hell is going on? She's got levels in her system that aren't like Heradee at all... Should I be doing any other tests?" He asked her sceptically and she shook her head, her hand clamping down onto his forearm.

"No. Look, she's just humiliated. She was out last night, on a date and drank too much. I promise. Everything after that is pure humiliation for reasons that I don't think she wants to discuss just yet." Her tone was pleading and he looked to her for a moment, studying her face as a Doctor, not a friend (or whatever anyone wanted to call them) looking for any signs of lie or panic. There wasn't any and he sighed, she let his arm go.

"If she's still like this tonight, I need to know. Don't make me worry, Charlie." He told her sternly and this time she caught his wrist, squeezing tightly.

"I wouldn't lie to you about this. It's just alcohol, a lot, by her own hand. I promise." That was what Heradee had promised to her in the early hours as they made their way back to their dorm so she was going to take that as gospel. He nodded once and walked back to the ailing girl, Charlie entertained a small smile to herself before following him – his worry for their friend was so sweet. He gave Heradee the mixture and made her take it then and there which was a sight within itself, telling her that she needed copious amounts of water and preferably sleep if she planned on skipping her classes for the day.

"Come to me if you need anything, okay?" Bones told Heradee who blushed even more violently at his words, nodding meekly.

"Thanks Bones. I owe you."

"Damn straight you do," As he pulled the curtain back he saw Lucy wandering into the infirmary and felt slightly awkward – so far, he'd done a great job of keeping Charlie and Lucy separate – he had known that they weren't friends before he had started dating Lucy, but only realised the extent of their infuriation with one another when Neil had pointed it out. As he'd said: 'they both want the same thing, dude. The other's blood' and then shrugged it off whilst silently and internally, Bones had panicked more than he had in years in fear that he was throwing away a friendship with Charlie by being with Lucy. But his friend had never mentioned a thing or made the slightest comment about the other girl, though Lucy had made a comment once about Charlie's academic scholar but after a few harsh words and a sharp glare, never said another word.

If Charlie saw Lucy enter the bay she didn't show it and stretched up to kiss his cheek lightly, he kissed hers and smiled as she lowered herself back down, hands on his arms.

"You're the best. See you in class?"

"I'll be there soon," He replied as they left, he shook his head, a ghost of a smile across his lips. Damn women. They were crazy and going to drive him insane.

"That looked serious – everything okay?" Lucy asked as she walked over and greeted him with a light kiss, he'd seen Charlie and Heradee pass her on the way in and the three girls had completely ignored one another. Sighing more to himself than anything else, he forced a smile.

"Great."

* * *

_**Authors Note:**_

_Heradee, you minx. She needed some love. As much as this seems like a random chapter, it is going to be of use coming up, I promise. _

_Thanks to everyone who has reviewed: Trekky17, SunshineCaroline, FuzzyDeath (read her story 'Relapse'), J-awesomeness, -Halceeon-, Fett012000, Secondhand Symphony, LunarEclispe, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar, Vulcanvamp, RachyDoodle, VikingShadow, thebloodrose, stargirl0507 - you guys are all bundles of awesome. No lie. _

_And to Trekky17, Fett012000, FuzzyDeath, J-awesomeness, VikingShadow (I want to work for your company!!), RachyDoodle and stargirl0507 for your PM's. I heart you because you guys crack me up and never cease to enable my psychosis.  
Fett012000, your review is sitting on my desk. 'Radioactive rodentia' is my excuse for everything right now. I want that phrase, along with a picture of the London Wheel, on a t-shirt. _

_I kinda have a surprise lined up. I think it's going to be greatness, I hope y'all agree... Hey, that there is the closest thing to a cliffhanger I've ever gotten! Trekky17, you're influencing me!! :)_

_Please review, reviews make me (want to) post faster!!_


	9. Tumble and Fall

_Wow, two posts within 24 hours! This is relatively unheard of from me... :) _

_Plug time: Have you read FuzzyDeath's 'Relapse'? It's the third in the series behind 'Rewritten' and 'Remean'. They are the awesomesauce. (Yeah, I used it - I'__m holding that word ransom until I get my cloning farm back!!)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek. I know that may come as a shock to some, but it's not true, the rumors are false. I do however own Charlie, Heradee, Neil and Lucy. Possibly a few more too.  
The chapter title is a song of the same name by Feeder. Love them. It's pretty laidback too, I was listening to it for the second half of this chapter. _

_Here goes!_

* * *

Whenever something went wrong in one of her classes Charlie would end up in the gym. There, she could hit the bags and kick until her legs ached, her arms felt numb and her aggression had melted enough for her to face the rest of the world because chances were, as soon as she got back to her dorm something else would crop up and rile her fury up again.

Today was like no other – an argument with one of her instructors had fired her up beyond belief and she stalked through campus glaring at anyone who so much as glanced her way, her mind whirring angrily over her argument as she headed back towards her dorm to get her gym clothes. Crossing the tree lined lawns she kept her head dipped low as to avoid seeing anyone and getting caught up in a conversation with anyone who was lurking around the dorm buildings. Glancing across the gardens she could see two figures standing by the door to the PADD lab, one of them she knew well – a male figure, stooping down to kiss a female figure whose arms wrapped languidly around said guys neck. Bones. And that... _cow_ (she couldn't think of anything else that she wouldn't scream across the grounds) Kellaway. Seeing them making out under the concrete entrance was exactly what she needed to top her day off, clenching her fists and stalking even quicker towards her room.

"Hey! Uhura stopped by – What's the matter?" Heradee asked, still recovering from her "incident" two nights ago and looking worried when her roommate stormed into their dorm and threw her bag down harder than necessary, pulling her boots off and throwing them violently across the room too.

"Shitty, heinous day. Going to the gym. Where the hell are my sneakers?!" Charlotte yelled, changing furiously and retrieving her trainers from under her bed, storming from the room in the same incensed whirlwind that she'd entered with.

The gym had a few Cadets scattered throughout including Gaila who waved merrily from a treadmill over the other side of the large room. She started working out, taking out her frustrations of the day on anything that allowed her to, ignoring the ache that built up in her shoulders, the cramping that was building in her calves and the fact that her ass felt like someone was incessantly kicking it. A few times she caught herself muttering under her breath and then got even more furious with herself for acting like such a fool. When the treadmill wouldn't yell back at her or the weights wouldn't hit back she moved into the combat training room, looking for blood.

This was her arena. Hers and Gaila's actually, most of their business was based off taking bets on the fighting that went on behind those closed doors. The safety switched off and Cadets took to each other to either prove their strength, worth, all of the above or simply to kick someone's ass. Most Cadets by their third or fourth years felt like they knew everything that the Academy could teach them so staying on terra firma caused pent up frustrations, power trips that couldn't be set free and of course – competition. She walked in and surveyed the scene before selecting an actual punching bag to use first – she couldn't sink her fists into anything holographic. She'd only fought once in the underground fight club and that was in her first year – she'd won, she still didn't know how, but it was pretty much her rite of passage to be able to take on the betting. Gaila too had fought, a few more times and so far, the girl had won some and lost some – depending which way the betting was going, of course. The first time she'd dropped the fight they'd cashed in hugely, the time after that everyone had betted that she'd lose again so when her opponent was taken out in a few mere blows, they'd hit pay dirt for the second time. Now whenever the Orion girl stepped into the ring no one had any clue if she was "in the zone" and going to perform – therefore the two girls controlled the betting easily. A couple of people were using the holo-simulators and as she wrapped a bandage across her knuckles and swung the heavy bag in front of her to get started, it was almost soothing to her, this was exactly what she'd needed, exactly what she'd come to the gym for – to hit something. To feel it shift slightly under her fists, to feel the power in her shoulder through to her knuckles, feel her kicks to the bag as though her legs were steel beams, to take out her day on something physical.

She had no idea when the combat room had gotten so full but snapping out of her trance she looked around to see Cadets everywhere – the room could house up to 70 spectators and two in a small "ring", roughly 50 people if everyone was working out and it was clearly nearing capacity. Gaila was flitting about, talking slyly into guys' ears as they trained and gossiping in the girls', she caught Charlie's eyes and nodded faintly which was a clear signal that they were going to be running it and cashing in again that night. This was fine by Charlie – if her instructor was stupid enough to believe that the Zeon government needed to switch to a communistic society to survive then he was more than deluded. Yes, she was still mad about her argument earlier in class but if said instructor was going to be a douche then she was going to screw the system in her own meagre way and run something illegal right under their noses. A few glances around the room again told her that the crowd that was there was the usual crowd, the usual betting crowd and as two guys wrapped their hands, suddenly, there was a crowd forming a perimeter which created the fight ring and everyone's workouts forgotten. She and Gaila took bets as the two guys duked it out, then another set and then another, the crowd staying similar in size and only changing a few faces over after each round. Most didn't want to miss the action but a few left either for class or to lick their wounds.

"Perils of business!" Charlie called after holding out her palm for one Cadet pay up, smiling to herself and handing the cash straight to Gaila, thanking her lucky stars that her "associate" was a Math whiz and kept track who owed what and who was yet to claim what. Uhura had shown up and shaken her head in disdain at her friends' sham business dealings when two female Cadets got up to fight, putting their helmets on so that the safety was on and no one could get hurt, only pride could get wounded which was usually more painful. The two girls fought admirably and as she assessed the crowd, Charlie saw a face that made her blood boil – Lucy Kellaway. The other girl saw Charlie the same time that Charlie saw her and scowled, clear that their hatred was mutual. Kellaway had been a thorn in her side for some time now, namely in her Xenomanagement class, now the fact that she was dating Bones made Charlie's blood boil. He was free to date whoever he wanted (and did) but Lucy... ugh. As Gaila's voice sang through the air, the two girls stared each other down.

"Who's next?"

"I'll go." Kellaway stepped forward, still glaring at Charlie who smirked dryly.

"So will I." She stepped into the ring and licked her lips with a wicked smile, feeling as though her day just got a little better.

Uhura had seen the glares being exchanged between Charlie and Lucy before either stepped up to the plate and started to protest, knowing that most of the fights weren't anything but a bunch of Cadets wanting to use their training on something other than a holographic Klingon, but this? This was two girls fighting it out over a Doctor who didn't even know that the underground fight club existed. It was personal and both girls looked like they wanted blood. Both girls stretched their arms slightly as Gaila took the wagers, the two fighters re-wrapping the bandages that were wrapped tightly around their hands as not to leave traces of blows on their skin and neither making a move to put their helmets on which meant that the computer had no way of triggering the safety mechanism should their blows get too hard. Which looked likely.

"Charlie, think about this." Uhura called, Kellaway was in her combat training class last year and had been a top student. In saying that, Charlie wasn't opposed to throwing a punch if push came to shove (and shove didn't work) but... this wasn't right. Her friend ignored her pleas and stared the other girl down, pushing her braid off her shoulder with a wry smile.

"Safety off." Neither girl flinched at her call as a cheer rose from the crowd, Gaila furiously taking bets that doubled as soon as the command override was done by a Lieutenant who was grounded from space for a misdemeanour, no one was sure what.

"Loose morals?" Uhura questioned quietly as the two girls took fight stance, she felt sick to her stomach. This was why she liked Vulcans. Their emotions never got in the way of _anything_ (sometimes to her disdain) and situations like this were simply avoided. As far as she knew.

A Cadet from engineering (who Charlie had dated for a month or so in her first year) was playing the role of referee and called the fight to start, the cheers and catcalls starting immediately from the crowd. Out of the corner of her eye Charlie could see Gaila rubbing her forehead which meant that they'd bankroll if she won – a scratch on the chin meant they'd be better off if she lost. Ah. So she was the underdog? Like she cared about pay dirt at the moment, she wanted blood more than cash. People seriously underestimated how much a furious Charlie Houston needed to hit something – the fact that it was Kellaway was an absolute bonus.

They circled each other for a moment before Kellaway went for the first hit which was ducked but then – it was on.  
The two girls swung, blocked and ducked, wrestled and fought for a good few minutes, a sequence that their combat instructors would have been proud of. It was when they were on the floor after falling that Lucy grabbed Charlie's wrist and ripped it backwards with both of her hands over her knee – the loud popping sound could be heard by all and was followed by a loud yelp from the victim. Pain shot up her arm and Charlie was about to admit defeat, Lucy scrambling to stand before the count was up but stumbling, but not before Charlie drew her leg back and kicked the girl. She hit her with full force in the cheek and felt something move beneath her foot as the Kellaway fell backwards, sprawled across the mats.

Painfully, gasping for breath and trying to ignore the searing pain in her wrist and hand, Charlie pulled herself to a standing position and prayed that the referee started the count now – Kellaway was bleeding from the nose and was still sprawled across the floor, gasping for breath and looking beat. Like a voice from above, the count rang out and Charlie was declared the winner, raising her good arm in victory as Uhura ran over, one of the Medical Cadets examining both girls.

"Oh my god, I heard your wrist crack – are you okay?" Uhura breathed, Charlie nodded and felt a genuine smile cross her lips for the first time that day.

"I'm great!"

"Safety stays on! You can still get injured person to person but at least the computer restricts the force of the blow partner to partner, okay?" The medical Cadet yelled, holding a towel to Kellaway's nose. The computer in the combat lab could sense when a hit was going to be too hard and automatically dropped a force field in between anyone who was fighting in a vicious manner. Charlie merely nodded at the doc and smiled over at Gaila who was doling out winnings to those that had bet on her side, Uhura examined Charlies wrist that she was cradling and sighed heavily.

"You should go to the infirmary. Safety off? Really Charlie... I know that you and Lucy aren't the best of friends but would it have killed you to keep the safety on?"

"I seized my opportunity Uhura. It's not illegal."

"It is if you get caught by Starfleet Command!" Her friend hissed quietly as the Doc walked over and took one look at Charlie's hand, flinching.

"I can't fix that here. Get to the infirmary – I can fix Kellaway up here as long as you didn't push bone into her vein. Go." The tone of his voice left very little room for argument so she left, passing Gaila on the way with a sly grin. He was hers. She had never said it aloud, she had never thought it through but damn it, of all the men in the world, Leonard McCoy, to other women, had her name branded on his ass. And if that troll Kellaway couldn't comprehend it then, well, she was going to have to be taught a lesson. And what kind of a lesson was better than one that the object of the class didn't know about?

Medical bay was littered with different officers and Cadets with different ailments as well as nurses strutting around in their pristine white uniforms when Charlie walked in, glancing around for the familiar face. She wasn't even sure if he was on duty and realistically it didn't matter, she stepped further into the Bay as a nurse walked over to her.

"Come with me," She ordered immediately, seeing how the girl was cradling her hand, Charlie followed her to a bio bed and sat on the edge when the nurse indicated that she should, feeling utterly hideous in her training gear – a short top that bared her midriff and baggy shorts, her hair pulled back into a braid with some spilling out from exertion.

"How did this happen, Cadet...?" The nurse was brusque as she inspected Charlie's hand, taking it from where the girl had it cradled and pressing on a finger, sending a stabbing pain shooting up the patient's arm.

"Ouch! I was in the gym and... Ow!" She hissed when the nurse pressed again, Charlie jerked her hand away instinctively and ignored the harsh look the nurse gave her.

"Yes, it's definitely broken. I'll get the Doctor."

"I could have told you that." Her tone was just as harsh as the nurse turned on her heel and stalked off, Charlie glared at her retreating back as the woman disappeared into another room, Charlie knew from her visits to Bones that it was a surgical room and she concentrated on taking deep breaths as the pain hit her in waves stemming from her (clearly broken) hand. A moment later Bones stepped out of the Medical Storage room and saw Charlie and crossed the bay in a few long, quick strides and reaching her before the other Doctor did who was on his way over did but turned back around and left, the nurse scurrying to McCoy's side.

"Charlie? What happened?" He asked, his brow still furrowed as he reached for her hand carefully, she winced.

"Gym."

"Your outfit gave that away, how did you break your hand, genius?" He replied with a small smile, cradling her hand so softly with one of his, his free hand brushing over hers lighter than a feather, checking for anything that shouldn't be there. Idly, she wondered if he touched all of his patients this softly and the thought killed her.

"Oh, just landed funny is all." She smiled back, waving the incident off with her free hand as the nurse looked up to the tall Doctor, her eyes betraying her interest that wasn't professional.

"I've already assessed the injury Doctor - it's a definite break."

"Thank you Captain Obvious." Charlie snapped, pressing her lips together in shock at hearing her own voice. The nurse scowled but Bones chuckled at his friend, keeping her hand in his.

"Yes, it is. Get me a tri corder." He spoke as though he was talking to a small child as the woman was sent off; Charlie glared at her back for the second time that day.

"Her bedside manner is atrocious."

"Want to tell me how you fell?" He replied, taking the tri corder when it was handed to him and scanning her entire arm, watching her push some hair out of her face with her good hand.

"Well, I was at a height and I plummeted to the ground. That's usually what a fall is. This time I fell on my wrist. And it hurts." She added, he rolled his eyes annoyedly and scanned her wrist again before letting it go and noticing how she cradled it straight away in a sign of the pain that she was feeling.

"Stop being a smart arse. Back in a moment." He told her, getting the equipment he needed to fix her and trying not to let his mind process how incredible she looked in her training gear... hot, sweaty... he shook his head and loaded up a hypo spray for her, walking back over with his equipment and signalling nurse over.

"Upload these readings into her file. Now." He told her, handing over the tricorder as the girl nodded and batted her eyelashes at him, he ignored the exasperated sigh from his patient.

"I'm surprised she manages to get any work done around here." She muttered and Bones grinned inwardly, raising his eyes to her when he thought he had his smirk under control.

"Jealous?"

"I blame the pain. Can you fix me straight away?" She asked and he cast an eye over the Bay, looking back to her.

"I have healing hands Charlie, you'll be fine." His eyes dancing as she let him take her wrist again, his thumb rested lightly on her pressure point, "I need you to wriggle your fingers a little." She did as she was told, wincing as it hurt but he felt the tendons dance under the skin, small and delicate just like her wrist.

"Have you been busy today?" She asked, making general conversation as he set about fixing the bones in her wrist and hand, wanting to know exactly what she'd been doing when she'd fallen or hurt it (there was no way that she would have broken it like this if she'd simply tripped – she didn't weigh enough), her question pulling him from his thoughts.

"Sort of. I've got an exam tomorrow that I've been studying for in between patients so that's taken most of my day. What about you? Exiled from any lectures today?" He asked, her being asked to leave Archers' lecture yesterday had made conversation across campus and normally he didn't pay mind to gossip but it had to do with Charlie so he was immediately interested. At his question her cheeks pinked up and she grimaced, brushing more hair that had escaped its style out of her face.

"Almost, but not today... but it's still early. You heard about that?"

"I think everyone did. Charlie, really, you need to keep your temper in check." He scolded her softly, not really believing his own words because when her temper flared he found her more irresistible than ever.

"That's rich coming from you."

"I'm not the one who yells at lecturers and tutors from across the classroom."

"I'm not the one who called his Xenopathology professor a worthless blip on the humanitarian radar." She reminded him, both smiling as he pulled a face.

"He needed to know. But Admiral Archer? Just be careful, okay? I don't want you to get booted."

"They won't boot me. Relax, okay? I've had a stressful couple of days and now karma's kicking my ass. Isn't that punishment enough?" She asked tiredly, he held up the hypo spray.

"No, but this is. Neck please." He ordered and she tipped her head to the side, brushing her braid aside with her free hand and winced, rubbing at the stinging spot when he administered the injection, glaring up at him.

"You like those things way too much, has anyone ever told you?"

"Aside from you and Jim? A few people, actually. What can I say? I like pain." He joked as he hooked her wrist up to what looked like a bigger tricorder, scanning her again and slowly, her wrist and hand became workable.

"Fixed yet?" She asked after a moment and he rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

"Not yet. Want to tell me what you fell from?"

"Does it matter from a Doctors perspective?"

"No, but it matters from a friends."

"I tripped over my feet."

"Your weight wouldn't hurt your hand like that. You're not heavy enough."

"I'm heavier than I look. I ate two stacks of pancakes for breakfast today."

"That means nothing. Plus, you wouldn't bruise if you'd fallen. You hit something. What?"

"The floor. I hit the floor." She maintained and he was slightly stung that she wouldn't confide in him but let it pass, if she didn't want to tell him there was more than likely a good reason. Although the look in her eyes told him that it might not have been as good as he thought and he was about to push her further when the nurse appeared at his side.

"Doctor, can you come and take a look at this? A Cadet has come in with facial injuries and Doctor Meknes is busy at the moment." She told him and he nodded, seeing Charlie stiffen.

"I'll be there in a moment. Move your fingers Charlie." He ordered and she did as she was told, sure that the Cadet with the injuries was Kellaway, fervently glad that Bones was going to let her go before he dealt with the second Cadet - mainly because he'd be able to put two and two together regardless of whether Kellaway shut her trap and didn't say anything. Her fingers moved without any pain and he pulled the machine off her wrist, watching as she flexed it for a moment.

"No pain. Thanks Doc, you're not half bad at this. Am I free to go?" She asked with false brightness, he nodded and inspected her wrist once more, eyes narrowed.

"Sure. Don't use it strenuously for the next few hours; avoid the gym for at least a day or so, okay? I'll see you for dinner." He watched as she slid off the bio bed and quickly looked over her body – long legs that were toned and clad in baggy shorts ending mid thigh and old trainers, and a top that left very little to the imagination, short and exposing a torso that made him bite his tongue to stop from groaning aloud. Her hair was falling out but she didn't notice, reaching up and pressing a kiss to his cheek in thanks before hurrying out of Medical, if it hadn't have drawn attention she would have ran out. Bones sighed and turned back to the rest of the bay, seeing the nurse hovering over someone else, more than likely his Cadet with the facial injuries. As he walked over he saw that it was another Cadet in gym wear and his curiosity piqued, leaning forward to see that it was Lucy, in her workout clothes and bleeding quite profusely from the face.

"I've given her a painkiller, Doctor." The nurse told him and slowly, the pieces started to form in his mind although he couldn't piece it together completely just yet.

"Get me 10mg of Diazepam please. Lucy, what happened?" He asked, the girl pressing a towel to her nose and her eyes watering, she didn't move at the sound of his voice or his presence.

"Fell."

"In the gym?"

"Yeah." Fell, his ass – this girls' nose was almost on her cheekbone and be damned if Charlie had fallen, there was something the girls weren't telling him and by god, he was furious. Knowing the wicked streak that Charlie had in her told him that Lucy was the innocent party and even he couldn't take it out on the second Cadet, she was in pain and clearly in dire need of medical attention. Besides, he was a doctor not a detective.

Not asking any more questions about how she got her injury but fixing her up diligently, the girl looking sheepish when she was patched up. He was used to fixing broken noses after Jim's numerous bar fights, this one was no different to any others that he'd sustained. Lucy didn't say anything and that was good, because as he worked he could feel fury at whatever the hell was going on reeling through his veins.

"Thanks. It doesn't hurt now." She told him awkwardlyy when he stepped back finally; she reached up and touched the tip of her nose as though to make sure it was still there.

"You should be fine, just make sure you keep your face clear for a few days, okay? Do you have any combat training that you need to be excused from?" Combat training was how the girls could have hurt themselves although he didn't know why they wouldn't say so. Besides, wasn't the safety usually on in hand to hand combat?

"No, no. I'm fine. Thank you, really. Are we still on for Friday night?" She asked and he just nodded, she squeezed his hand and left the bay, almost as quickly as Charlie had.

******

Dinner that night was fairly normal for the crew except for the silence from Bones, the curiosity that something had clearly happened in the gym that Charlie wasn't telling him.

"Anything interesting happen to you girls today?" Jim asked conversationally and when the four girls exchanged a glance, it sealed McCoy's convictions.

"Aside from Charlie breaking her wrist?" Gaila asked when Heradee turned bright red, the girl couldn't lie and the other three knew that, glaring darkly at her as she emptied her glass of water and standing to get another as Jim looked taken aback, picking up Charlie's hand.

"What? You okay Tex?" He examined her wrist like he was looking for some form of mark, Charlie pulled her hand back.

"I'm fine. What are you looking for? Counting my fingers?" She joked and he looked to Bones who had continued to eat through the exchange.

"Did you know about this?"

"I treated her."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Kirk demanded, receiving a dark glare from his best friend and sighing, turning back to Charlie. "How did you do it?" He asked and that got Bones' attention, he looked to the blonde girl who was buttering a roll.

"Yeah Charlie, how did you break your wrist and one of the bones in your hand?"

"I told you. I fell. I was in the gym and I tripped over my feet and stacked it." She shrugged, Bones watched her face for any traces of lie but she hid it well. He glanced to Gaila and Uhura who also held it well, rolling his eyes. Damn women, too damn cunning.

"It was quite funny actually. One minute she was running over to me, the next she was sprawled in the floor." Gaila smiled and the two other girls shared a chuckle as Heradee sat down.

"Were you there, Heradee?" Bones asked and felt Charlie's eyes glare at him and without looking at her he knew that they would be a stormy grey, the way they got when she was furious. Well, if he had to patch up two girls with suss stories like hers and Lucy's with the lamest of excuses, he was going to make her suffer. Heradee smiled and shook her head, stabbing at something on her plate.

"No, I wasn't. I wish I was, apparently the whole thing was quite funny." Damn, they'd already gotten to her, typical women. They were too good at lying and were the most conniving creatures that could roam the galaxy.

"The gym must have been quite a bloody place today – just after you left Charlie, I had to patch up Lucy for an injury that she sustained down there." He hedged again, it was going to be his last attempt but seeing how her eyes narrowed at her plate, he felt a small victory. Something _had_ happened.

"Really? What happened to her?" Even Jim noticed that her voice was intentionally light and that all four girls were suddenly interested in their plates. Plus he knew Tex, she would always ask how a person was... although Bones was sort of dating Lucy and Tex and Bones were whatever the hell they were... pieces started to form a puzzle in Jim's mind and he sat back, exchanging a glance with Bones.

"She fell too, apparently."

"Too bad Starfleet doesn't hold classes in klutz, we could tutor," She replied loftily, looking over to Neil with a sweet smile, "Neil? Can you pass the salt please?" Bones and Jim exchanged another glance that neither believed the stories being peddled but let it go for the time being, Bones shot a dark glare to Charlie once more before returning to his food, Jim smiled.

"Why do I get the feeling you ladies are some version of Starfleet mafia?" He joked and Heradee dropped her fork, looking to the other three girls with wide eyes and a grin.

"That's what we should nickname ourselves! With all of the dodgy things we do – "

"Heradee." Gaila cut her off sharply as Charlie glared at her, Uhura held up her palms.

"I don't know half of the stunts that you three pull and I don't want to know." She told her friends, Gaila bit her lip, trying not to laugh.

"In that case, I wouldn't look under your bed for a few days." She giggled as the rest of the people at the table exchanged a glance, Charlie ignored everything and kept her focus on her plate, chewing on a mouthful of carrots, Bones watched her for a moment before smirking. Dear god, the girl was a Starfleet mafia kingpin.

* * *

_**Authors Note:**_

_Sorry it was so long but I couldn't split it. It would be too short otherwise and I'd more than likely get distracted by something shiny and forget to post.  
I should also point out that I know nada about medical terminologies, I'm still mastering the whole 'no knives in the toaster' thing. I tried to ask one of the Doctors at my (old) work and he told me that if I walked in on any more of the players getting their massages, he knew three ways to dislocate my knees with his thumb and pinky fingers. So basically, its all crap, don't try it at home and the only phrase that I know is 'stat'. :)_

_Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has reviewed: FuzzyDeath, Trekky17, -Halceeon-, Steff7, thebloodrose, J-awesomeness, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar, LunarEclispe, Hidden Relevance and RachyDoodle, - you guys make me want to post so much faster! _

_And again, over the past 24 hours to FuzzyDeath, Trekky17, J-awesomeness and Fett012000 for your PM's. They kill me. Seriously, I refresh my inbox like an idiot. And hear songs of hamsters in my head and imagine poor Squirrels with bald tails being treated by Spock in a lab coat. :) _

_... It's a meeting of the minds ... C'n'C ... _

_Xx_


	10. What Goes Around

_Hi y'all! :) __I've been mulling over whether too post this now or later when I've finished part deux of it but if its just sitting here, may as well right? _

_Disclaimer: Don't own Star Trek. I do own Charlie, Heradee, Rodney, Lucy, Neil, Paul Cook and a delicious batch of muffins. I may own a few other things but right now I can't remember.  
__The chapter title is taken from the song of the same name by none other than the Trousersnake himself, Senor Justin Timberlake. I'm sure you've all heard it. Hate the video, love the song._

_This picks up pretty much where the last left off. Just a head's up. :)  
Without further ado, here goes nothing..._

* * *

Did he have any right to be angry at Charlie? Probably not. He wasn't angry at Lucy for some reason, but at Charlie, he could feel a frustrated fury bubbling under his skin. She'd broken her wrist, Lucy had broken her nose and they had both told him that they were products of simple, everyday accidents.

Which was completely feasible. Nearly every shift that he pulled in the infirmary someone came in, hurt from the gym or combat training. There were idiots who thought it best to turn the safety off when practicing their weapons training, there were idiots who practiced a little too fervently and injured themselves in exertion and there were simple idiots who fell over things. He wouldn't put either of the girls into any of those piles. If he had to, Charlie could be a klutz at times and Lucy was a little too highly strung about being top of the class so he could see her pushing herself... but that was at a stretch. Accidents, his ass.

After their almost showdown at dinner, no one had ever seen her eat so fast. The second that her plate had been emptied she'd dove up and disappeared and when Jim had muttered that her wrist might have been giving her trouble he had been met with an exchanged glance from Gaila and Uhura, a deep blush from Heradee and a glare from Bones – he'd fixed that damn wrist perfectly, there was no way in hell that it was giving her trouble.

"Dude, that was weird. You had to fix up Lucy? In the same day that Charlie breaks her wrist?" Rodney murmured as the boys disposed of their dinner and left the Mess Hall, Bones just shrugged. He was furious but wasn't going to show it - it had nothing to do with him.

"Lucy broke her nose, didn't she? You sure Tex didn't break it for her?" Jim asked with a smile that looked like a proud papa at the notion.

"No, she can throw a good punch but there was too much weight behind Lucy's break. I already thought of that." He admitted and that was that, the subject was dropped vocally, though it still ran through Bones' mind like wildfire. He was just being paranoid, he had to be. But like Rodney had said, both in the same day? In the same hour? The two women in his life both have an "accident" in the gym? It didn't sit right and he knew that going to Charlie would be useless; chances were she'd end up screaming at him if he showed up on her doorstep muttering half baked ideas and plausible explanations.

Lucy was easy to find – in the Xenobiology lab where she spent most of her free time. He hated how the lab always smelt and tonight was no exception – it smelt like burning leaves and something sour that made him want to sneeze. He pulled up a stool next to her and sat on the table, his feet propped up on the stool as she noted some results, stretching up to kiss him lightly in hello.

"How's your nose?" He asked and she blushed bright red, throwing him a smile that he couldn't return.

"It's great, thank you. You do good work."

"I've repaired a few in my time. How did it happen again?" He didn't miss her spine straightening slightly as she glanced up at him, eyes guarded.

"I told you, I had too little tension in a piece of equipment and hit myself in the face. Quite stupid, really. Can you hand me that jar with Saurian spider beetles please?" He did as he was told, not missing the glance that she snuck up to his face.

"Best brandy there is, Saurian." He muttered, looking around the lab for a replicator – after the day he'd had, the thoughts that were plaguing him a glass or three was exactly what he needed.

"I wouldn't know. Are you going to stay in here for awhile with me?" She replied with a flirtatious smile and he shook his head, wondering why that smile didn't get him more – she was pretty Lucy, smart and funny but it wasn't the kind of smarts that interested him or the kind of humour that he found side splitting. Really, they had very little in common aside from their mutual attraction.

"I can't, I've got to get some homework done. I'll see you later?" He told her, sliding from the table and feeling a twisted sense of pleasure that she looked slightly crestfallen, he kissed her forehead and made to leave but she held onto his tunic, pulling him down for a kiss that should have been heart stopping but wasn't.

"See you tonight?"

"Sure." He didn't say anything else, just slipped out of the lab and back into the night air.

****

Charlie hated lying to Bones. She hated it. That look in his eyes – he _knew_ that something was up and she had lied barefaced to him. Numerous times in one day, more than she had over the length of their Starfleet careers.

It was all Lucy's fault.

She would have told him if the reason that she'd been sent to the infirmary wasn't his girlfriend. Sure, he'd probably chew her out anyway for doing something stupid but it wasn't anything that she couldn't handle. Hell, she liked that angry look that usually flashed through his eyes, the air of impatience that he took one when someone had done something stupid. But if she told him that it was Lucy who had broken her wrist then he would be mad at her because after all, the fight club was hers.  
And Gaila's, but Bones merely rolled his eyes at anything that Gaila did, used to her exuberant stunts and ways.

It was dark out as she walked back towards her dorm building having left dinner abruptly to get out from under his curiously fierce stare, the library and assignments couldn't distract her this time and truth be told, the man that she usually sought out, the man whose eyes she looked for in a crowd – she was avoiding. The feeling in her stomach was worse than the feeling that shot up her arm earlier in the day.

A note in their room told her that Heradee was in the kitchens at the back of the dorm block and when Charlie made her way down there, the smell of home cooking hit her like a brick to the head. Or a trainer. Heradee was mixing something in a large bowl and reading over one of her many recipe books, there was a stack of ingredients and dishes surrounding her that it looked like a grocer had exploded.

"Hey – you're back early. I thought you'd be in the library until late." The brunette smiled as Charlie sat on the counter, picking up a spoon from a bowl of batter and licking it without asking.

"Couldn't concentrate. Is there a bake sale that I didn't know about?"

"Funny. I have the time, I promised that I'd make... Paul... some of my muffins." She blushed furiously and Charlie let out a whoop, choking on a remnant of batter. Paul Cook was the professor that Heradee had been, _ahem_, busted with.

"He gets you thrown into the brig and you make him muffins? That's the funniest thing I've ever heard." She croaked, Heradee rolled her eyes and greased a tin, checking the oven. The kitchen was small and hardly ever used, there in case students wanted to make their own food from scratch rather than use the replicators or the Mess Hall.

"I'm also making some as a thank you to Bones and some extra for us. You and Gaila are pigs in case you hadn't noticed."

"Well, aren't we a bitchy Martha Stewart tonight?" Another voice asked from the doorway and Charlie jumped a mile, clutching her heart.

"Jesus Christ!"

"I've been called worse," Gaila shrugged with a grin as she sauntered over, sticking her face into a full bowl of batter and coming up with it all around her mouth and flecked across her cheeks.

"You're such a savage!" Charlie laughed, Gaila smiled innocently which was pretty hard to do with the lower part of her face covered in a batter beard.

"Me? You're the one who kicked a bitch in the face because she was giving you the side eye!"

"No, I think it was because she's giving Bones the side eye." Heradee added in jest, Charlie pulled face as the other two girls high fived, dipping her spoon back into the batter to lick it off again but Heradee slapped her hand.

"No double dipping!"

"She just shoved her face in there!" Both looked at Gaila who still had batter on her jaw but tried to look innocent, falling into a chair and looking up at the two.

"How's your wrist?"

"It feels guilty."

"Maybe you shouldn't have kicked his girlfriend in the face then." Heradee told her with a pointed look, Charlie raised an eyebrow and pursed her lips.

"At least I didn't have sex with her on the beach."

"Maybe you should – there's one way to get Bones' attention." Gaila offered helpfully, her face impassive which made it difficult to tell if she was kidding or not.

"She broke my wrist first!"

"Did she?" This was clarified with a nod from Gaila, Heradee shrugged again, "I'm not getting involved. But he knows something's up."

"No shit. Dinner wasn't awkward at all now, was it?" Gaila asked sarcastically and Charlie flung a spoonful of batter at her, earning a shriek from the smartass Orion and a barked 'Hey!' from Heradee. The batter flicked over Gaila but she didn't seem to mind, licking the flecks off her hands and face, only half listening to the conversation around her.

"Maybe you should tell Bones the truth." Heradee suggest quietly and Charlie shook her head, holding onto the counter top as not to fall.

"Nope. He'll drop it now, I'm sure. As long as Kellway's shut her fat mouth, at least."

"Right. His girlfriend and you, both renowned for hating each other, show up in Med Bay within minutes and claim that your injuries are from accidents. Mind you, he's a smart guy. I'm totally sure that he wont think anything's weird _at all_..." Gaila deadpanned sarcastically and Charlie clenched her hands into fists so that she didn't hurl the bowl of batter this time.

"You've got a batter beard." She pointed out dryly, Gaila shrugged and continued licking around her mouth.

"It's my androgynous look."

"It kills me that the two of you can't take anything seriously. He's pissed, on the warpath. You're avoiding him Charlie – don't tell me you're not – this is not good. _So not good_!" Heradee moaned, finally pouring the batter into the trays and sliding it into the oven, wordlessly handing the dishes over to the other two girls who busied themselves trying to find every remaining drop of batter as Heradee made another batch.

"He has no reason to be." Charlie murmured to herself after a full few minutes, her voice like an echo.

****

Bones looked at their dorm room tiredly and sighed – as usual, it was trashed. Not that he cared, but Jim had clearly been looking for something – crap consisting mainly of clothes, mainly not his, were flung over both beds, old 21st Century textbooks (_those_ were mainly his) in a knocked over pile at the base of his bed and as he slammed the door and walked inside further, he tripped over a boot and a pair of women's underwear, cursing under his breath and not even wanting to know how they got there – either someone had left without their underwear or there was a whole other side to Jim that he did _not_ want to know about.

He'd been in class all day after a night shift at the infirmary now all he wanted to do was sleep – if he could find his bed under Jim's apparent scavenger hunt. Pulling his Red Cadet tunic off and dropping it at his feet he allowed his chin to drop to his chest for a moment, feeling his neck crack and then his spine as he sat and tugged off his boots, wiping everything that covered his bed to the floor with one swift arm movement, he'd deal with it later. He stepped out of his pants and reached over to set the alarm on his PADD because he had another shift at the infirmary after his next class – it was a good thing to be given so many shifts because it meant that his superiors had faith in his abilities but damn, he almost wanted to screw up just to lighten his workload slightly.

"Lights out." He muttered, falling onto his mattress and pulling his comforter around him, eyes drifting shut straight away when the chime sounded to let him know that someone was at his door. He froze and then decided to ignore it, whoever it was be damned because he didn't care but it rang again and then again and he sighed, flinging his now warm comforter back and storming out of bed and to the door, a frown across his face and a growl low in his throat. Heradee stood with a basket over her arm and a bright grin on her face, too bright for... god; it was 08:00 hours. He had a class soon.

"I came to say thank you and repay you for... fixing... me the other night." She told him and through his tired daze, he paused, offering her a confused look.

"A girl appears on my doorstep offering some sort of repayment? Kinky." He smirked at her and she rolled her eyes, pushing past him to walk into the trashed dorm and cast a cutting eye over the place, "Come right in," He added under his breath, pushing himself off the doorframe.

"Nice outfit." It was her turn to smirk, glancing over his exposed form and noting that he was a boxer's man – good. That added to his sex appeal, she made a mental note to mention this to Charlie.

"Should I take you storming in here and checking me out as a compliment?" He grouched, not moving to cover himself though – Heradee was a friend but right now, sleep was needed so that he didn't kill someone later in the day. Never a patient, hell no, he was a skilled surgeon even when sleep deprived, but one of the idiots that he had to share classes with. Her roommate included.

"Trust me McCoy, we all know you've already got two girls vying for your attention, throwing myself into the mix would only complicate matters further. Here. I made you some muffins." She held out the basket and he grinned – the girl could cook. Her muffins usually didn't get a chance to hit the plate and he was partly guilty of that.

"You didn't have to."

"I wanted to. I seriously thought that I was going to die the other morning... let's just say that I owe you and Charlie a lot." She blushed and his curiosity piqued, sitting down on his bed and motioning for her to sit, she sat gingerly on the edge of Jim's and tried not to look repulsed at being anywhere near Jim Kirk's bed.

"What actually happened?"

"That's a secret. Let's just say that... well, I was on a date and things got a little too far."

"And Charlie was there?"

"No. She came to get me. At 3am. From the brig." That was all that she was going to say and her jaw set, hearing that she had been in the brig made his eyebrows raise to the ceiling. Woah. Not at all what he had expected.

"Okay. Thanks for these Hera, really, I love your muffins."

"I'm glad. Gaila and Charlie love the batter – they're like pigs in shit with that stuff. It's quite gruesome actually." She replied, standing to leave and the thought made him smile, setting the basket down on a shelf.

"I'm not surprised. Now I just have to call in Charlie's owing me and we're square," He stretched, rubbing his palm over his jaw as an idea came to mind and he smiled sweetly down at the girl in front of him, "Actually Hera, you can help me with that."

* * *

**_Author's Note:_**

_This chapter and the next were going to be one giant one, but the last part of the next one just didn't want to be my friend. Sorry kids! :) _

_I've figured out who Gaila reminds me of. Does anyone watch 'Scrubs'? She reminds me of 'The Todd' a little. I almost wished that I made her a nurse - could you imagine the infirmary if she and Bones were in there? Le sigh. Ooh, hello plotline! _

_Supermassive thankies to:_ _RachyDoodle, Hidden Relevance, FuzzyDeath, , -Halceeon-, Trekky17, NaomiBlue, LunarEclispe, shopgirl6, VikingShadow, Fett012000, thebloodrose, Vulcanvamp who are the bestest reviewers ever._

_And as always to FuzzyDeath, Trekky17, Fett012000 and J-Awesomeness for their hysterical PM's. I'm now worring about Weight Watchers trying to take over the world and George Kirk's 'stache turning into Cousin It and am fearing for my own sleep deprived safety. It isn't deprived if it's inflicted, is it? _

_Right. I stupidly was going through my DVD collection today and as proud of a few jewels in there as I am (Spiceworld the Movie! Hell yes!) and I tripped over Season 1 of Smallville. I don't think I've seen it since Season 2 (thank you Australian TV, your crappy scheduling sucks) but... dayum. Tom Welling is simply divine! If the show didn't suck so much and he wasn't opposed to taking off his shirt every episode (are you hearing this Jared Padalecki? Where's your skin lately, bro?) I think ratings would be astronomical. I'm starting a petition that he gets a role in the next Star Trek movie. Or as my personal slave, I'm not fussed. Just putting that out there. _

_**Please review! :)** _


	11. Wicked Game

_Hi! _

_Here's the next installment, it didn't turn out as pretty as I wanted but hey, we're following up Bones in boxers so everything else gets a little faded... sorry kids!_

_Disclaimer: If I owned Star Trek, do you think I'd be too lazy to walk down the other end of my house to get food? Hell no. I'd pay someone to get it for me, or fund someone to make me a robot slave that looked strangely like Chris Pine. Karl Urban-bot would be my pool boy.  
I do own Charlie, Heradee, Neil, Rodney, Lucy and Heather.  
The chapter title is taken from the song of the same name by Him. Yes, it's a Chris Issak cover but this version is a million times better, imo. Enjoy! _

_Here we go again! _

* * *

Charlie returned to the girl's dorm block the next day and dropped her things on the ground, stumbling across her messy side of the room to look for a jacket between classes. The sky around the Academy was a dark grey and looked to be getting darker by the minute, the waves from the beach that could be seen from a distance; grey and lapping angrily at the shore – a storm was brewing and that was never good. Besides, if there was one thing that Charlie Houston hated, it was a storm. Heradee's things were on her bed and they caught Charlie's eye, which meant that her friend was around the place somewhere.

So far she'd been avoiding Bones like the plague if not for anything else than to avoid that steely harsh look in his normally soft hazel eyes, but the downside of that meant that she was, in essence, avoiding her other friends too. She sighed and pulled a jacket from its hanger, hunting for a scarf – unknowingly, she had let Lucy win. Not only did the bitch get a chance to break Charlie's wrist but now she and Bones were... well, she was avoiding him, she didn't know how he felt but it couldn't have been good, Lucy had won. Again. That thought killed her more than anything else.

A familiar smell caught her nose as she left the dorm and instead of heading out of the building she turned and headed back towards the kitchen, only partly surprised to see Heradee there surrounded by another load of ingredients.

"Muffins two days in a row, Hera? Dude, even Martha Stewart had her limits." She joked, seeing Heradee mixing ingredients, her friend looked up to her with a look that Charlie couldn't quite place. Fear? Guilt? She looked ill and idly, Charlie wondered how much of the sweet batter she'd eaten herself.

"These aren't for me. They're for you, Charlie. I did something bad." Yup, that was guilt. Charlie felt her stomach twist and racked her brains to try and pre-empt what could be said – was it something to do with Paul? What did that have to do with Charlie?

"Okay. What did you do?" Her voice came out even and slow, only a pitch higher than when she was threatening someone. And yup, there was that fear. Her bag dropped to her side and she folded her arms over her chest as, oh great, the first few lashings of rain started outside.  
No good could come from this.

"I went to take Bones his muffins this morning and we got talking, okay? He's a tricky bastard! And he told me that he was going to call in your favour and but I had to help... he lay the guilt trip on me! He's very conniving! And he made me, I don't know how, but he did... I told him." Heradee was talking so fast that it was hard for Charlie to grasp a word, still confused when she thought that she'd heard everything.

"Told him wha – oh. About yesterday." Her voice was flat and her legs felt numb, though she didn't want to sit. Her feet were planted firmly to the ground and movement may stir up other tendencies that she didn't want surfacing right now.

"I'm so sorry. He made me!" Heradee cried to the sound of Charlie's groaning – great. He knew for sure? Although he had as much right to be mad at his sorry excuse for a girlfriend, somehow they all knew that this would be blamed more towards Charlie. Great.

"Damn it Hera! First rule of fight club – don't freaking talk about it! Especially to the guy whose girlfriends' nose I kicked in the day before!"

"You don't understand! He has powers!"

"He's a doctor, not a magician!"

"He was in his underwear! That body leaves a girl slightly jelly-like at the knees, Charlie! I'm weak – did you know that he's a boxer boy?" Another rushed sentence and this time Charlie quirked an eyebrow.

"He was in his underwear?"

"I woke him up." Heradee was chewing her lip so hard that it looked like she was going to rip a hole through it, Charlie let out a deep breath that she hadn't realised she'd been holding. Okay, Bones knew what really happened. So what? So did 50 other Cadets who were there. And Lucy had broken her wrist first; Charlie had acted purely in defence. There was nothing wrong with that.

Then why was there a pit in her stomach the size of Neptune?

"How was he?"

"Surprisingly cool. Like it was what he'd been expecting? I don't know. You haven't seen him today?"

"No – I've been busy. I've got to go, I'm late for class. You don't need to make me muffins Hera; I would have done the same thing if I was in your place." She smiled, not sure if that was true – Bones knew that Heradee was the one who would crumble first and damn him, he'd gotten to her. Next time anything else went down the girl was being babysat by Gaila, Uhura or herself. Babysat and gagged.

"I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry for! Seriously hon, relax. I'll see you tonight, okay?" She replied with a forced smile, sliding her bag over her shoulder again and ducking out the back way to get to her class, feeling cold rain splashing at her bare legs. Great. There was definitely a storm brewing now.

****

"Wait, let me get this straight. Charlie and Gaila run an underground boxing ring; Charlie and Lucy jumped in, turned off the safety, proceeded to break each other and then lied about it?" Jim asked incredulously, his voice was tinged with pride.

"Yup."

"That would have been so fucking hot!" He burst out with a grin which faded as soon as Bones glared viciously at him, "I mean, that is extremely irresponsible."

"I don't give a damn about that, I give a damn that somehow, Charlie's wrist got broken and apparently she kicked Lucy in the face! What the hell is up with that?" Out of all of the things that he could have asked Heradee to help out with when it came to Charlie, getting her to reveal her roommates shady underground fight club wasn't one of them. But, as had been painfully obvious at dinner the night previous, she was the weakest link of the four, would clearly be in the know and was indebted to him for curing her hangover. It was a perfect fit.

"You know that they don't like each other. At least they weren't in the firing range - _that_ would be difficult to explain. Wonder who won?"

"Charlie did. Apparently she and Gaila bankroll from this thing."

"I wonder if I can get in on the betting." Jim mused and McCoy resisted the urge to trip him up as they walked. His blood hadn't stopped boiling since the inkling that something shady was happening had started and now that he had confirmation, he wanted to kill her. Well, not kill, but maim. Just enough to knock her pretty little ego and devious business dealings down a little. Of course though, his best intentions always got screwed because his smarts and his sense, as well as his plans and bravado always faltered a little at her presence whether he knew it or not. He knew it, just didn't acknowledge it.

"So you're pissed because she hit your girlfriend?" Jim questioned, seeing the fury burning under his friend still as rain washed around them and the undercover walks became more crowded by the minute.

"I'm pissed because she hit Lucy and then lied about it to my face!"

"Are you pissed at Lucy?"

"When did you take diplomacy, Jim?" He snapped in reply, a scowl etched above his eyebrows. There was no use, he had barely slept and now with this burning white hot through his veins he was a time bomb - more so than usual. Jim didn't look phased and merely laughed at his friends' turmoil, letting out a whistle as they passed a female Cadet who smiled winningly back at the blonde.

"I'm just saying – Tex had her wrist broken too, you know. Besides, two girls slugging it out over you? My man, you might just be king of the world right about now. Ooh, gotta go!" He added when the girl looked back over her shoulder with a flirtatious wink.

****

"Lucy? Can I talk to you for a moment?" Bones asked, she was at the same workstation that he'd left her at last night and if it wasn't for her change in hairstyle, he would have wondered if she'd left at all. She cast him a happy smile and nodded, dropping her PADD onto the table with a kiss.

"Of course. What's up? You look tired. Did you have breakfast? You get angry when you haven't had breakfast." She told him, reaching out to smooth his hair, he ducked her hand.

"I'm fine. Did you and Charlie kick the crap out of each other yesterday?" He asked pointedly and her face clouded, her jaw set and although he wanted to hear her say it, wanted to hear at least one goddamn admission from either of the women intent on destroying him, that was all he needed.

"She told? Should have known that wench would cave,"

"Hey!" He barked, not in the mood to put out spot fires but sure as hell not in the mood to hear her whine about his choice in friends, "Not a wench." A lot of other things, yes, but not from Lucy. Only from him was it acceptable.

"Fine. I'm surprised that she spilled, seeing as it's her game and all. But then again, it's no secret that she's jealous of you and I so I'm not surprised. Let me guess – she told you that I did something horrible?"

"Considering she came in with a broken wrist, I'd say you did."

"Did you see my nose? She broke it!" She shrilled and he stood, not in the mood.

"Whatever. Lie to me again and I'll let it heal naturally." He snapped as he stormed out, now on the hunt for the second piece of the puzzle. She was going to be harder to track down seeing as Charlie was apparently avoiding him – which she damn well should.

Apparently a master (mistress?) of disguise, he didn't get a chance to see her until dinner. He had waited by one of her classes but still managed to miss her, staked out the replicator that she used in between classes for coffee, even stopped by her dorm but only Heradee was there, babbling that Charlie knew that he knew. Aha, so she would have stepped up her game in avoiding him. Would she admit defeat long enough to break bread with her friends? Or would she blatantly shun them as to avoid him? Suddenly Bones wished that he'd taken tactical – the girl was a wiz in that class apparently and now he could see why.

She was late and he started to wonder if she was going to show at all when she dumped her tray down at the only spare seat at the table which was next to him. Purely by coincidence.

"Tex! Where have you been today?" Jim asked and she cracked a smile, loosening her scarf slightly.

"In the labs. I've got assignments due Kirk, as do you."

"I got a whole lot done today," He grinned slyly and she held up her fork as he went to continue.

"Stop there – I already got the 'am I going to see him again?' from Heather. Seriously Jim, she's a bunny boiler."

"Heather Restirre? Ouch," Uhura murmured as a Lieutenant walked past with a bandage across her nose and one on her cheek, Bones nudged Charlie in the side lightly.

"Is that you're doing too?" He asked innocently, his voice quiet but he hit his mark at seeing her cheeks pink visibly and she speared something on her plate.

"Fine. Out with it. Come on Bones, we all know that you're going to blame me so – go. Do your worst." Her voice was low and she turned to face him, waiting for the strike she knew he'd take.

"You need a check up on your wrist. And you lied to me." Was that what he was really mad about? He didn't know. Technically, it should be because she hit Lucy, shouldn't it? "And you hit my girlfriend. Lucy." He added, seeing her eyes flare as she snapped something back at him, he didn't hear. Even when she was mad, it made him smile. And he didn't know why – he was dating Lucy and he was _happy_ (wasn't he?) but as Charlie argued with him over what he couldn't remember, he had to fight to keep from grinning like a fool. Maybe it was because her eyes looked grey like the thunderstorms that used to roll over the Georgia sky without warning, her eyes normally a bright blue that stood out clouding to a serious and lethal silver when she was mad. Which she apparently was now.

"Don't humour me McCoy. Come on, out with it. Blame me for something you clearly know nothing about and then tell me I need a fucking check up? What are you playing at?"

"Don't flatter yourself Princess. I didn't get a chance to book it in when you came in for your apparent fall, I was a little busy repairing you and pulling Lucy's nose back into place!"

"Then she shouldn't stick it where it doesn't belong!"

"Where would that be exactly?" Jim interrupted to me met with the darkest glares possible form his friends. Laughing to himself he sat back and watched the two bicker in front of him, their voices staying low but he could see the fire in each of their eyes and it made him smile – his two best friends in the world, the two most fearless people that he knew and the two most headstrong, the two most kind and caring (although neither would ever admit it) and they were in love, a crazy, fiery love that Jim had never witnessed before but was seeing it unfold before his eyes with them. The only catch? Neither had any clue whatsoever.

"How dare you? You automatically think that I landed the first hit? Did you even ask your perfect little girlfriend?"

"I know you and I know her. This has nothing to do with her other than the fact that you decided to play Rambo on someone else, regardless of whom, without the fucking safety! What the hell were you thinking?" He snapped, purposely trying to keep his voice low so that no one else could hear their argument – he could feel eyes boring into him, most likely Lucy's. Right now, or ever, he didn't care. Her silence after his question got him a minor victory which he relished, they were rare when it came to arguing with her and as her cheeks flushed with fury, he continued his tirade.

"Damn it Charlie, stop doing things half cocked!" He exploded and she grinned at his choice of words, not daring to make a comment. He was holding that fork pretty damn tightly and more than likely knew at least three ways to render her useless with it within a mere moment.

"It's just a bunch of Cadets letting off some steam. With some cash. The safety is always on."

"Except for when you jump in."

"I've fought twice. This was the first without safety."

"Apologise."

"To her? You're out of your damn mind."

"To me."

"Not until you apologise to me!" She was tired. Tired of dealing with him and that hag, tired of fighting her cool when he was in close proximity, sick and tired of it all. She dropped her fork onto her tray with a crash and stood although he was still barking at her for something, glaring at him as she stomped off. Bones glared back at his plate and ignored the stares that he could feel from his friends before doing exactly as she had, stomping off in the opposite direction and cursing under his breath all the while.

"Dinner and a show," Jim joked to the rest of their table who all grinned at the two having left. There was never a dull moment.

****

It was the day after Charlie and Bones had stormed away from dinner and so far, the day had been spent cursing the other's name. Fury, unabashed and untamed flew between the two though it really had no right to. It was late in the afternoon in the combat training room and another meet of fight club was breaking out, Charlie surveyed the scene around and wheedled one of the Security Cadets to make sure that the class in the next room had been dismissed. First years were only welcome on special recommendation - they tended to break a lot easier.

Two figures caught her eye and she was shocked to see Bones and Jim wander in, McCoy's arms crossed over his chest as he surveyed the scene around him. The ring was forming and shge offered the two a smile as Gaila took the bets, the two Cadet fighters warming up.

"Nice of you to join us. A formal introduction gentlemen – this establishment here is a time honoured tradition within Star Fleet." She smiled, attempting to bury the hatchet somewhat.

"Bets closing!" Gaila's voice rang through the air, clear and crisp like a bell as Jim leaned back, muttering something to her, golden eyes rolling.

"Cash only, no friend bets and trust me Jim, you wouldn't have the energy to keep up."

"Burn." Charlie laughed, stealing a glance at Bones who happened to be stealing one right back. A smile tugged at the corners of her lips and she didn't try to fight it, the referee calling a start. She watched with a calculated eye both the fight and the crowd, jumping within her skin when a voice leaned down into her ear.

"You suck at apologies." His lips brushed the shell of her ear and it made her entire body flush with colour, fervently praying that he hadn't noticed. But he was talking to her, which was something, wasn't it?

Now a smile played at his lips and she didn't give him a chance to say anything, leaning against his torso and wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. He allowed her and held her tightly right back, she took a moment to feel his steady pulse, breathe in his smell and relish the feel of his cheek resting on the top of her head. However, when the fight in front of them started to get a little too overzealous, she pulled away and glared at a couple of Cadets from security who pulled the fighters apart.

"Get them out of here!" She barked and Gaila shoved one of the fighters in the shoulder, ripping his helmet off.

"Rule number two of fight club – it does not get personal!" She crowed and next to her, Charlie felt both Jim and Bones eye her pointedly.

"Don't flatter yourselves, boys. Besides, it's my place and I'll do whatever the hell I want." She smiled, not looking to either. The next fight was called and the bets taken, Jim wandered over to place his and Charlie felt two arms rest on her shoulders from behind, leaning back against the strong body that she knew would keep her safe and comfortable. Loosely, his arms wrapped around his neck and his chin dropped onto the top of her head again, both sighed at the close proximity.

"You suck at apologies too, you know." She taunted, knowing without seeing that he was smiling and when he spoke, his voice sounded comfortable; content.

"Call it even?"

"Chalk it up to another one."

The next day, he broke up with Lucy.

* * *

_**Author's Note:** _

_The biggest thank you's ever to: Trekky17, -Halceeon-, FuzzyDeath, J-Awesomeness, RachyDoodle, NaomiBlue, Hidden Relevance, Yayyou, LunarEclispe, Vulcanvamp for their amazing reviews. Seriously, I know I say it a lot, but you guys really are legends. Aww. _

_Also to Trekky17, FuzzyDeath, J-Awesomeness and RachyDoodle for their PM's when I'm buzzing on Diet Coke and can't sleep. Which is also why I'm posting this at 6am. _

_Lifehouse sing about broken wieners. Jason Wade, you fithy man! _

_Also, there is some real randomness coming up... will it be with Charlie and Bones though? Will it be in this story? Hmm... _

_Reviewers get oodles of non- creepy love! :)_

_Xx_


	12. When Did Your Heart Go Missing?

_Hi y'all! Okies - yes, this is a short chapter, but please don't be mad! Just a little something for the weekend... :) _

_**'When Fates Collide'  
**__Guess what! The epicness, the massive surprise, the crap that I have been mumbling on about forever in these muchly edited notes has arrived!!!  
__FuzzyDeath and I have collaborated and brought Charlie here, along with her OC Cierra together to randomly create havoc and cause mischief with Bones and Jim.  
It's under her account so if you've added her to your alerts, you should already know what I'm talking about and if not... here's the link: __.net/s/5264627/1/__Yes, it's random, yes, it's an alternate reality but yes, Bones is in there and Charlie is in there and Cierra is totally kick ass and has Jim eating out of the palm of her hand... until Bones threatens to cut it off, of course. And if that doesn't grab you, our Author's Notes there tell a story of their own... that we are in dire need of psychoanalysis, caffeine and probably a few other things that can be found at your local Target. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek. I own Charlie, Heradee, Neil, Lucy... none of them are in here but I do own them. Really.  
The chapter title is after the song of the same name by Rooney. The lead singer was the main guy in the first Princess Diaries. Major upgrade there, Anne Hathaway! _

_

* * *

_

_"Bones and Lucy broke up. Dumped her sorry ass." Jim explained the next morning at breakfast as Bones and Gaila waited for their breakfasts at the counter, Charlie felt like someone had dropped a bucket of ice water over her head. He had? Really? Under the table she felt a sharp kick to her ankle and her eyes shot up, glances at each of the faces to see who had nudged her purposefully but each face remained impassive, the owner of the foot a mystery._

Jim's words from that morning had caused a Cheshire grin to not leave Charlie's face all day. If you asked her why she would say that it was just because Lucy Kellaway got exactly what she deserved but those who weren't blind could see that it was because a) Bones was a free agent and although she would never do anything a single Bones was an infinitely sexier Bones and b) again, not just in class, not just in combat, she had prevailed over Lucy freaking Kellaway and had even gotten a chance to break the girls' nose.

It was a happy day.

Bones stormed through Medical Bay, glaring at the data pad which held his list of duties to be done the on his shift but that was merely for protocol – if anyone who pulled shifts in the Bay didn't know what had to be done by now than they were more incompetent than he had already deemed them. Although that wasn't a stretch.  
Dozens of vials glared back at him in one of the many cupboards in the Pharmacy and although their sorting had to be done, he would be grateful for any distraction from such a tedious task. On cue, the doors to the infirmary opened and Charlie breezed in, pulling her sunglasses off and smiling at a nurse.

"Hi - Doctor McCoy told me that I have to be here for a check up?" He slapped the data pad into the chest of another Med student and walked over, settling his face into an impassive mask. Truthfully, she probably didn't need any check up - his work was rarely questioned and he set more broken bones than he cared to think about. However, it had pissed her off during their argument and gotten her in there now so it turned out to be a great idea. Inwardly, he thanked himself slyly.

"I thought I'd have to drag you here kicking and screaming."

"I know your affinity for hyposprays so I figured that if I didn't come willingly, you'd just knock me out and drag me in." She shrugged as he led her over to a bio bed, watching as she sat on the edge easily, feet dangling off the side.

"That's true. And your dignity has suffered enough over the past few days," He replied diplomatically and as she incredulously searched his face for traces of a smile before berating him, he let a flicker of a smile show through.

"You can be a total ass at times, you know that?"

"I think its part of my charm, actually." He smirked as he picked up her wrist and pushed her sleeve back, fingers gently feeling the bones and tendons.

"Hey. I heard about you and Lucy – I'm sorry." She told him suddenly after a moment's silence, her voice small and it made him smile though it came out as more of a snarl.

"No you're not." He replied and Charlie paused, her head inclining slightly as her stomach dropped to her toes and flew back up to where it belonged in a split second. Bones quickly loaded the hypo spray before turning back to her, seeing that she was slightly flushed, "I know that you and Lucy weren't exactly the best of friends." He pressed his palm to her forehead and waited for a moment, looking down at her with laughing hazel eyes when she snorted.

"Sorry. I mean, gross misunderstatement, but... if you two had been serious, you know that I would have been friendly to her, don't you? And Gaila too, we're not _that_ barbaric."

"Right. I think there are a few people that you've jipped in that underground fight club of yours who may disagree. You've got a slightly elevated temperature." He told her, snickering when her cheeks flooded with colour, leaving for a moment to get a tri corder and as soon as he turned his back, Charlie panicked – of course her temperature was elevated! Skin to skin contact with Leonard McCoy cause many a girls to feel elevated temperatures, quickened pulses... hell, he was lucky that she didn't spontaneously combust!

He could see her freaking out under the surface, enjoying having a certain power over her if only temporarily and as he stood in front of her and waited for the trincorder to load with her details, he couldn't help his blatantly laughing at her which frustrated her even more. He was wearing that smug look that she enjoyed so much and tried to cover her humiliation at her fever pitch (although the reason of the temperature spike was yet to be determined on his end) glancing up at him, eyes wide.

"Fever? No, I'm fine."

"Did I miss you getting your Doctorate?" He replied and scanned her over, Charlie managed a small smile.

"I ran over here."

"Then you're unfit - your core body temperature should have dropped back by now. You choose Charlie: do you want a fever or a physical?" He had her trapped and she knew it, brushing her foot along his leg slyly and watching as he laughed, lowering the tri corder for a moment to watch her squirm.

"Depends – who does my physical and what does it entail?"

"I do it." It was hard for him to keep his cool when her foot was brushing along his leg like that and although he knew that it was in jest, it was still affecting him greatly. Not that he'd stop her though, oh no.

"Right. And what do I get for a fever?"

"A hypo spray." He was leaning forward slightly, his eyes holding hers with an amusement that told her that he knew what she was playing at but damn if they both weren't having fun with it. Besides, they were both single now, what damage was there in some harmless flirting?

"Well, you're my Doctor – what do you suggest?" That was a loaded question if he'd ever heard one and he didn't fight the smile that spread lightly. When her innocent look dropped and was replaced with a wicked grin, he felt his own temperature hike slightly.

Were they really doing this? Unabashed flirting? Sure, they were friends and had flirted before, more times than either would admit but as his eyes flicked briefly to her lips, the question ran through his mind that made it almost impossible for his temperature not to spike all over again:

_One night, and you could get her out of your system. Would that be such a bad thing? _

"I suggest the physical. You were booked in for one next week anyway, may as well get it over and done sooner," He lied with a slight shrug as she sat up straighter, ignoring the light-headedness that took over when it was clear how close they were. It was almost senior year, hadn't they put themselves through enough? She had no idea what was happening but she definitely liked it, his eyes were burning through hers and whenever she glanced at his lips, mere inches from hers, her entire body sang.

"Get what over and done with sooner?" Another voice asked as Jim appeared, cutting into the moment and effectively ruining it, sitting on the bed next to Charlie. He flashed his two best friends a questioning look before realisation hit that he may have interrupted something when Bones stepped back from her and Charlie slumped, both with guilty looks flashing over their faces laced with sheer annoyance.

"Never mind," Bones pushed another hypo spray into Charlies neck and wanted to curse both himself and Jim to eternal hell - what the hell was he thinking? She was a friend, and a good one at that, if he'd done something stupid, he'd be throwing all of that away. Besides, in just under a year they'd be blasted off to different ends of the quadrant - he was a Doctor, she was a diplomat, chances were he'd end up at a Starbase and she would end up on a research ship somewhere, "Come on, we've got class."

* * *

**_Author's Notes:_**

_All together now: Awww. _

_Massive huge thankies to FuzzyDeath, Hidden Relevance, Fett012000, -Halceeon-, Trekky17, Vulcanvamp, LunarEclispe, SunshineCaroline, VikingShadow, thebloodrose, Yayyou, Raxsah003, RachyDoodle, for being the most awesomeness reviewers ever. Special shout out to Raxsah003 - welcome aboard, hun! Thank you again for your review, it really made my day! _

_ Also to FuzzyDeath and Trekky17 for their PM's - Fuzzeh, the person who dreams the best stuff and writes as crazy as I do.... the bestest business associate on the planet! Next... we go global... Yeah, Ci's getting into my head again. Damn her! :) _

_So now, you should review here and then go and read When Fates Collide... It won't bite... we haven't posted that chapter yet... _

_Xx_


	13. Days Go By

_Hi! I'm sorry that this has taken a little longer than expected but a couple of days ago, I wanted to delete this story from existence. Ya'll know what its like... _

_Have you read __**'When Fates Collide'**__? It's a collaboration between FuzzyDeath and I and features Charlie and Bones and Jim and Cierra and... lots of fun. The link is at the bottom of the page. _

_Further to that, if you're unsure who Cierra is, I highly suggest reading FuzzyDeath's trilogy: Rewritten, Remean and Relapse. They're awesome. And no Fuzzeh, you might not see Drew again. He likes it here. :)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own, didn't steal, simply borrowed! I do own Charlie, Heradee, Neil and anyone else who may appear here.  
The chapter title is taken from a song of the same name by Lifehouse. _

_I was listening to Natalie Imbruglia's 'Shiver' for the first part of this chapter, then Kate Nash's 'Pumpkin Soup' and Lulu's 'To Sir With Love' for the second part. Yeah, I don't get it either.  
Have only just discovered the Kate Nash song though and I think it could become a favourite... _

_Enjoy! _

* * *

Final exams at the Academy turned the entire campus into a cemetery. At the end of each semester the bodies that usually lay on the grass covered campus in the sun in between classes were shielding their faces with PADDs as they frantically read lecture notes.

Tutors, lecturers, professors and anyone else who taught classes were chased through the halls being bombarded with questions from students trying to remember the smallest details from lectures, any ranking officer who was on planet and at Starfleet Command usually had to field queries relevant to their field and experience to a bunch of Cadets who frantically scribbled down any points that they could get word for word in attempts to get a 'leg up' on their classmates and soon to be colleagues.

The end of this semester was no different. Study groups were formed between people who wouldn't normally acknowledge each other's existence but suddenly each note taken was invaluable and each ally was another set of notes. The girls' dorm had seen a screaming match break out between two neighbouring Cadets earlier in the night because one girl needed loud music to study whilst the other needed complete silence – the dorm RA had intervened before a phaser was pulled.

And of course, the replicators poured more coffee than any other time of year - last semester every replicator at the Academy had failed at the exact same time and the incident had nearly caused a riot on campus. To this day, suspicious minds looked at a certain cocksure male Cadet as the person who may have thought that it would be funny but even that certain cocksure male Cadet was in the dark as to who had done such a thing.

"Why do I need to know about politics? I want to be an engineer! I'm the one that makes the ship go faster when negotiations break down and the ship is getting fired on!" Gaila whined suddenly in the middle of her study group, Charlie glanced up and reached for her coffee.

"Why do I need to know about engineering? I'm the one that makes sure that negotiations don't break down." She drained her cup and debated refilling it, Jim glancing up with a sly grin.

"I've seen you argue Tex – Gaila, I'd be making sure you can make any ship faster than warp factor ninety."

"Please! I'll only break down negotiations if you captain us all into Klingon space!"

"I won't let him – helm right here." Neil pointed to himself but didn't look up from one of the many PADD's that lay around him, star charts and engineering schematics more than likely.

"And I sure as hell wouldn't go anywhere near Klingon – we're explorers, remember? Why go somewhere already charted?" Jim mused, Charlie slapped his arm lightly.

"Then you'll need me to negotiate us into alien space. And negotiate your release after you more than likely sleep with some alien princess and get your ass hauled onto a prison planet."

"And you'll need me to be able to beam you out just in time!" Gaila added happily and Neil was about to add himself to the pile but Bones cut him off; his hazel eyes firm although he smiled very slightly when he spoke.

"If you don't shut up I'm going to start practicing my exam on the next person who makes frivolous conversation. I could use a cadaver." The group returned to a study silence before Jim smirked, speaking with a quiet voice.

"Don't worry Bones – we'll need you on board to patch us up." The group laughed quietly but kept their focus on the tasks at hand.

After a few moments Charlie's attention started to slip and she examined her nails, mentally debating whether or not to paint them before summer holidays or not, her thoughts jarred back to reality when Bones dumped another PADD into her lap without looking up from his own or the 21st Century text book that lay open over his folded knee.

Her eyes lifted to see his glancing up at the same time to meet hers, she ignored the feeling that swept through her body as he offered her a half smile, breaking their eye contact and flicking through a stack of notes that he had. It had been harder for her to suppress her... feelings... for Bones lately, something that she wasn't exactly a fan of, but if there was one thing that the whole Lucy debacle had resulted in it was Charlotte being reduced to a puddle on the floor even more so than she already was when he was around. Gaila caught her look to the Doctor and smirked, winking at Charlie who pursed her lips and picked up the PADD that had been dumped in her lap, tapping her stylus on her leg furiously in reply, ignoring the quiet giggle that Gaila let slip.

Bones was completely oblivious to the glances that the two girls were exchanging and yawned, reaching for his coffee mug to find that he had already drained it. Sighing and reaching to set it back down, intent on not taking his eyes from his notes he felt it taken from his hand he glanced up to see Charlie unfolding herself from sitting Indian style on her bed next to him and stepping over Jim to make another coffee run, gathering everyone's dirty dishes as she went.

He watched her leave before looking back down to his PADD to get his brain back to the notes at hand and not at the girl whose bed he was sitting on, whose pillow he was leaning against, feeling the mattress that he sat on shift slightly. Jim was on the floor leaning against it and glanced up at Bones with a playful grin, his arm reaching up to test the bounce factor of Charlie's bed.

"Nice." He joked to Bones who merely slapped him upside the head; Jim's eyes already back to his PADD. There was only a week until exams and it was going to be a very, very long 7 days.

****

It was the eve of the first day of their last year at Starfleet and the four girls were out. It was the same tradition that they had done for the past three years and this year, the final time that they would carry out such rituals meant that it was it to go out with a bang, not a whimper.

Of course, it didn't mean that they had to take that literally, but they did.

It wasn't a huge tradition, but as the small campfire on the beach that they had built (Gaila had built actually, it paid to be friends with someone from engineering) crackled and the small music player than Heradee had brought played their favourite music continuously, the four talking and laughing, celebrating that they were about to embark on the biggest year of their lives.

Slinging her arm around Heradee's shoulders, Charlie glanced to her friend, the two with cheesy grins on their faces and not being able to hold in their giggles.

"Face it Hera, you'll miss me as a roommate. We've only got a year left!"

"Wow. And then I can have clean and organised quarters?"

"At least we know where everything of yours is to steal," Gaila grinned, indicating her top that had been deftly stolen from the neat side of the dorm, folded as predicted in the drawer that housed all of the brunette's tops.

"I'll be wanting that back before we graduate." Was the reply through pursed lips before a smile broke free and they all cracked up, Uhura topped up their drinks.

"Graduation. Wow. This time next year, we'll be boarding ships." There was awe apparent in her voice and Charlie let out a shriek, stamping her feet in excitement.

"We're going to be graduating! Christ, I never even thought it possible! Ahh!" She shrieked again as did Gaila, the two diving up to swing each other around, running about on the sand and kicking water at each other from the waves that lapped at the shore. Their screams and laughter mixed with the music playing and the sound of the city around them, it only took Uhura and Heradee a few moments to join their friends, the four darting in and out of the sea that was black with night, crashing in small but furious waves against their ankles, the only lights from the city, the bridge in the distance and the campfire that looked as though it would never dwindle.

"Okay, toast time!" Gaila called, topping up their glasses once more and slapping Charlie when she rolled her eyes jovially, snatching the bottle and taking a swing from it.

"That might be easier, hey? We've got four bottles..." Gaila grinned as Heradee held up her palms.

"I'm fine with a glass."

"Heradee, you're such a lady!" Uhura joked, taking one of the large bottles that Gaila held out, the Orion native standing on the small rock that had been her chair for the night, holding her bottle above her head like a sacrifice.

"I'm serious! A toast! To us, the four most amazing women to ever pass the ranks of Starfleet academy – "

"We haven't passed yet, we've still got a year to go, dumbass." Charlie retorted, a giggle breaking her voice as Gaila dumped a small amount from her bottle over the girl's head, the four beside themselves and yelling, enjoying being best friends in their own lives for the time being.

"To the four girls who have single-handedly run this place for the last three, well, two for some, years and done it with a smile, some cleavage and a string of highly delicious men!" Gaila finally got her toast out and they all clinked their bottles together, taking long drinks and shuffling around the campfire when Uhura pushed Gaila off the rock and stood up herself.

"Here is to brains, beauty and brawn – may we continue to be so fabulous even when we don't have to wear the red uniforms every day!"

"I still have to wear red – Engineering, remember?" Gaila griped with a grin as they cheersed their bottles again and this time, Uhura poured some of her drink over her roommate's head.

"It's maroon!"

"My turn! To us – let's make a pact, here and now: no matter where we end up in the galaxy, we're here for each other. Com links work wonders and shore leave and we can still send letters to each other, you can't pike out!" Heradee warned, climbing up on the rock as Uhura scrunched up her nose, shaking her head as she took a drink.

"Sorry guys, I plan to diss and dismiss y'all as soon as we part ways. _If_ we part ways! Can you imagine if we all end up on the same ship?" She yelled and the next five minutes were spent loudly discussing how awesome it would be if all four of them were stationed on board the same ship. Which wasn't highly unlikely – they were all in four different departments and nearing the top, if not the top of their classes, it was definitely plausible.

"Cheers!" Heradee yelled and they took long drinks, Charlie climbed up onto the rock shakily, holding Gaila's shoulder for support and laughing when the girl wrapped her arm around her legs, cuddling into them jokingly.

"Part of this pact – if one of us needs the others, we're there. It doesn't matter how or why, we just are. Deal?"

"God, you're such a shyster! Even making a pact you call it a deal!" Heradee squawked and as they each took yet another hit from their drinks, the alcohol adding to their already heightened love for each other, sitting and eating, yelling at the music player when it played a song that one of the girls didn't like.

"So, we're all starting final year single." Gaila mused; Charlie shot her a sideways look.

"I thought you were always unattainable but never unavailable?"

"Oh, I am."

"I'm not single." Uhura nudged some sand at her roommate who wagged a finger at her in reply.

"Pictures or it didn't happen. Mystery men don't count."

"This one does!"

"How do we know he isn't some freak? What if he's married?"

"I thought married men were your specialty," Heradee offered to the Orion innocently, Gaila didn't get the humour and nodded earnestly.

"True. If he's married Uhura, I can give you pointers as not to get caught..."

"I'm not the one who has to stuff boys under her bed, Gaila. He isn't married, he's just... secretive." Uhura replied evenly, shaking her head and it was clear that no details of said mystery man would be leaked, no matter how much Gaila tried.

"As I was saying – fine – _three_ of us girls and all of the boys are single starting senior year. Hmm," She tapped a finger to her chin in mock thought as dancing eyes met Charlie's who laughed, playing dumb.

"What difference does that make? That I won't have to go Rambo on anyone?"

"That you and Bones can hook up! It's senior year! Come on Charlie, you've had two years! Now we're looking down the barrel of graduation –"

"This is precisely why I'm not going to ruin a perfectly good friendship! I think he's cute – so what?"

"So you two have been dancing around each other since the first night you met!" Gaila shrilled with a grin, wanting to partially applaud her friends' stubbornness and partially to slap her upside the head for her stupidity.

"Okay. Hypothetically speaking: I go to him and tell him that I like him as more than a friend. We have two options from here –"

"Top or bottom?" Uhura supplied sarcastically which earned her a high five from Gaila, Heradee clicked her tongue and Charlie laughed, burying her toes further into the sand.

"Either yes, things go well but then at the end of the year, we get shot off into space and more than likely at opposite ends of the galaxy. Or, he laughs in my face and I spend the last year avoiding both he and Jim. This would totally suck." She replied, throwing another small branch onto the fire and looking up to see three pairs of eyes watching her – gold, brown and green – all three shaking their heads.

"You're supposedly a genius?"

"Here's an idea – how about we don't discuss it anymore?" Charlie replied, shooting Gaila a silencing glare, "Silencio, Orion!"

"Okay, okay! I won't say anything more, for tonight at least," Gaila amended after a moment and the two girls suddenly dove up, Charlie chasing her as they ran through the surf, screaming and yelling at the tops of their lungs.

"Any ship that should end up with both of them on board has my complete and utter sympathy." Heradee smiled to Uhura who laughed, watching as the two in front of them kicked waves at each other, laughing and hurling mocked insults.

"I think any ship that gets any of us is damned lucky." She smiled, her voice thick with pride and emotion, smiling and letting a tear spring to her eyes as Heradee leaned over and gave her a hug.

"I love the four of us. The crazy, loving, insane, caring, four of us."

"I love the four of us too."

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_

_I wanted to write the last part of this chapter forever and ever and it still didn't turn out the way I'd envisioned. Meh. But now they're in their senior year! :) _

_I know that I sound like a broken record but seriously, my reviewers are the absolute best people in the world! Special shout outs to: Hidden Relevance, FuzzyDeath, Yayyou, Canna, VikingShadow, Trekky17, LunarEclispe, Vulcanvamp, lucky7steph, RachyDoodle, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar, Raxsah003 and Larxenethefirefly for reviewing the last chapter. I'd say 'group hug' if it wasn't so creepy. _

_Also to Raxsah003, Trekky17, and FuzzyDeath for your PM's, I laugh at my computer screen way too often because of you guys. Not that I'm complaining! I loves it! :) _

_Again, here's the link to __**'When Fates Collide'**__: .net/s/5264627/1/ - the story that FuzzyDeath and I have collaborated on. Charlie and Bones are there and might be getting their shit together faster over there than they are here! Maybe. I can't make any promises and please remember, it's the same characters just in an alternative reality. :)_


	14. Where the City Meets the Sea

_Hi! Sorry I haven't updated in over a week... *ducks random things being thrown* But! Peace offering?! This chapter is long and fluffy! And involved shirtless boys! Woah, stops like magic... _

_ Let's just say that the site crashing was the tip of the weird week iceberg._

_In my mind, the song at the very end of the chapter is 'Everybody's Workin' for the Weekend' by Loverboy. Its a classic, and was featured in Scrubs. I highly suggest giving this one and the chapter title song a YouTube, because they're awesome. This was the hardest chapter to name because I had a playlist a mile long and every song on there deserves uber recognition._

_Disclaimer: I stole this like a calculator from my old work. Yeah, because Star Trek really fits in my bag. I'm Mary freaking Poppins.  
The chapter is named after a song of the same name by_ _The Getaway Plan and Free Willy is more than likely a Japanese delicacy by now but the name is lisenced to someone who isn't me. _

_Voila petals, enjoy!_

* * *

A long weekend for the cadets meant that a large group decided to go to the beach, the weekend stretching out endlessly before them.

She pressed the chime for the boys' dorm room and it opened straight away, Bones had let them in but was already walking back into the room.

"Good morning to you too." Charlie muttered, shooting him a smile when he glanced over his shoulder, she could see a smile bubbling under the surface.

"It's early."

"It's beach day!" Gaila sang loudly, Jim looked over to her as he hunted through his things for something, his smile wide.

"Gaila, what the hell is that?" He pointed to the giant and already inflated whale that was tucked under her arm, knocking things around wherever she (and it) went. She glanced over her shoulder, confused for a moment before Heradee let out a mocking laugh.

"He means Free Willy, dumbass."

"Oh! Isn't he awesome? Ooh la la, check out the pretty! Jimmy boy, who are these? Have you been hiding friends, delectable ones at that, from me?" She crossed the room, dropping Free Willy in the process and picked up a photo from Jim's desk, the whale falling to the floor with a loud squeak that made Heradee and Charlie snicker, shaking their heads.

"I don't know what's worse – the whale or her X-Ray vision when it comes to boys." Heradee muttered; Jim glanced over at the photo.

"That's my Dad, weirdo. Mine and Charlie's," He added with a glance to Charlie who quickly stood, glancing at the small photo over Gaila's shoulder. It was a candid shot of two men in Cadet Reds walking across the lawns, both smiling shit-eating grins much like the one that Jim wore... as did she, Charlie supposed. Both men had tidily parted hair and immaculately pressed uniforms like was the style back then, she smiled softly. If only they could see their offspring now.

"Hel-_lo_, Daddies! Those are some awesome genes... hot damn; both your Dads are hot!" Gaila squealed, Charlie flinched.

"That's so creepy. God Jim, you and your Dad look alike." She smiled, both men had the same pale eyes and George Kirk was a well built guy, who was slightly taller than his friend by only an inch or so. Michael Houston had dark hair and bright eyes that glinted mischievously even through the photo, Charlie felt herself smile as Jim let out a quiet laugh.

"My Mom tears up whenever I mention you," He told her as Gaila set the photo down and picked Free Willy up again, the toy squeaking as the door chimed and she ushered past Heradee to get it.

"Mine does for you, too. It's slightly weird." Charlie admitted as Uhura barrelled into the room, followed closely by Neil and Rodney, Ken in the back and a few others waiting in the hall, ready to go.

The walk to the beach was a short one and everyone was in high spirits, trooping across campus and through the streets looking like a protest march rather than a bunch of Cadets on a weekend off. They reached an empty stretch of sand and set up camp, the girls lying out towels and stretching out in the sun, the boys starting up a football game and running into the surf.

"God bless the Academy," Gaila smirked as the crew spread out and a bunch of the boys pulled their shirts off in the sun, Charlie donned her sunglasses and felt a grin spread over her jaw at the scenery.

"Amen to that."

"You two sound as bad as each other." Uhura's eyes remained closed and her jaw tilted toward the sun, the four girls stretched out in their swimwear to catch some rays.

"Open your eyes, Uhura. Greet the man meat," Heradee giggled and when Uhura followed instruction, her eyebrow arched much like her mystery man's trait.

"I love long weekends." She sighed happily; Charlie stretched her arms above her head and arched her back, the feel of the sun on her skin and a smile for no good reason the best kind of therapy there was. After a moment she opened her eyes under her sunglasses and felt her smile deepen, standing a little further down the sand out of the corner of her eye she could see Jim, Neil, Bones and a few more of the Cadet boys playing a game of football and calling teams, most eyes turned towards the girls though. She turned over to lie on her stomach, pretending that she hadn't noticed them but cracked a small smile.

"Smile ladies, we're being watched." She murmured, propping herself up on one elbow and with her back to the male group as Heradee sat up, looking to Charlie but her eyes cast to the boys and she grinned.

"Bones looks delicious."

"Back off Heradee, he's taken." Uhura warned lazily and Charlie's blood ran cold, she sat up so fast that her head spun.

"What?" She shrilled and as the other three girls giggled, Gaila reached out and patted her arm.

"Relax darling, she meant by you. He's a no-go zone to everyone else. Unless he goes there first, of course." She amended after a pause, making Heradee roll her eyes.

"We're not dating." Charlie mumbled, leaning back down to one elbow and this time Uhura turned her cat-like smile to her best friend.

"Maybe the sun will fry your brain today and you'll do something about that. Seriously, the sexual tension between you two is enough to make everyone else in the room jealous."

"Uh, maybe the sun has fried _your_ brain darling; we're not in a room." The blonde pointed out smartly and all four burst out laughing at their stupidity, Heradee stood and dusted sand off her legs.

"Water?"

"I'm in." Charlie scrambled up and pulled Uhura up by the hands as Gaila waved them away, sliding an old cowboy hat over her face.

"Go. I'll hold the fort.... and enjoy the view," She grinned with a devilish laugh as the other three girls ran down the sand and straight into the surf, shrieking when the first large wave of cold salty water hit them, laughing as they waded out their waists and splashed around, enjoying the simplicity of Earth's greatest source.  
For a bunch of people who spent their days with their heads in space, mapping stars and reading about the political studies of foreign species, a day on the beach was almost as alien to them all with its simplicity and land loving aspects.

The three ventured from the surf awhile later saturated and happy, laughing to themselves and gossiping about the rest of the people that they were with, most of their Cadet year taking up a large space of sand with the girls stretched out on towels and the guys getting involved in a game of football which all girls agreed was possibly one of the better aspects to the day. More of the girls had decided to sit together so by the time that Heradee, Uhura and Charlie made their way back over to Gaila, there were another few female Cadets there in their suits, all stretched out and talking animatedly.

"We're discussing the scenery." Gaila laughed as her three best friends sat down, Uhura glanced over to the football game and screwed up her nose.

"Pretty to look at, but they're the same arrogant guys who waste time in class and make the same comments every Saturday night at any bar in the galaxy." She replied sternly, Charlie giggled and glanced over, her eyes focussing on a certain Doctor straight away.

"But they look _so good_ out of uniform."

"Thank you, Starfleet!" One of the other girls chorused and as drinks were passed around the girls all toasted their comrades and giggled slyly, spending the day in the sun as it should be.

When the boys had either finished their game or decided that they weren't getting enough attention (the latter being the most likely) they made their way over to where nearly all of the female Cadet class had now stationed themselves, spread out but all together like a small community, the sun still there but now turning orange as it dipped into the horizon. It was beautiful.

Charlie was sitting up on her towel as Bones walked over and collapsed onto her towel so she was half leaning over him, looking up at the girl with dancing hazel eyes.

"Are you okay there?" She smiled and it took all of his strength to keep his eyes on hers and not where they wanted to roam although they had all day without her knowing.

"I'm a little tired." He replied matter-of-factly and she laughed quietly, playing with some sand before her eyes met his again.

"Want to go back to your room?" How long he'd wanted to hear her utter those words and for a moment he entertained the idea that she was flirting, knocking it back for the time being.

"Only if you come with me."

"I'm not tired."

"You don't need to be." His eyes were intense and she felt herself wanting so badly to lean down and kiss his lips, knowing that he'd been in the surf so his lips would be cool and taste salty made her smile. Bones could barely hear anything over his heart pounding loudly in his ears and he stopped himself for reaching for her hair, to wrap the cool wet strands around his fingers and pull her down to him. However, theoretically ending the day with a broken nose, ruined friendship and severe awkwardness put a major glitch in those plans.

"Let's go!" Someone called and suddenly around them was a heap of movement, Uhura glanced down at Charlie as she started to pack her things, noting her friends' flushed cheeks that had nothing to do with sunburn.

"Food." She explained simply, shooting the bewildered blonde a knowing smile that was met with equally knowing pursed lips that barely concealed a smirk.

"Drink." Jim amended jokingly to which Uhura rolled her eyes, the entire group was packing up. Charlie stood and brushed the excess sand off her legs before looking down to Bones who was still lying on her towel, looking up at her as though he was perfectly content where he was.

"Come on Moondoggie - it's time to get our drink on, apparently." She smiled to Bones, holding out her hands and he took them though didn't put any weight into them when he stood, looking confused and brushing sand off his shoulder.

"Moon what?"

"Old school, like, _way_ old school reference. Movies from the 1960's." She explained; swatting his shoulder when he pulled a face, Heradee's words caught her ears.

"Gaila! Where's Free Willy?"

"He's chatting up some Lieutenant I think. Why?" She replied, Heradee, Uhura and Charlie all exchanged a glance, Uhura leaned back and glanced at the stretch of sand and surf that they'd taken over for the day, frowning when she looked back to her roommate.

"The whale isn't there."

"The wh – oh! Free Willy, _whale_ Willy! No, he's gone back already to the dorms, Rodney took him back." Gaila replied with a wave of her hand and again, Heradee, Uhura and Charlie exchanged a glance.

"I don't think I want to know." Charlie muttered as they set off following the large and boisterous crew up the sand to whichever cafe they'd wreak havoc on for dinner before the party really started.

****

The group of Cadets staggered into one of many bars for the night, a mixture of already half drunk, combating sunstroke as well as the fact that there weren't any classes the following day – they could do almost anything at the moment and not have to front up to a lecture or flight simulation for at least another day.

"So, I'm thinking that you and I haven't hung out in awhile," Jim told Charlie as he wandered over and slung an arm over her shoulders, she smiled but rolled her eyes.

"Who did you tell that we're together?"

"A redhead in the corner. Wouldn't take no for an answer... like I'm some piece of free ass." He joked sullenly and his words cracked her up as she wrapped an arm around his waist and kissed his cheek before reaching up and rubbing traces of what she hoped was her lip gloss off his skin.

"No, of course not. Jim Kirk is an upstanding citizen!"

"Who gives back to the community by being horizontal," He replied with self depreciative sarcasm as the door to the bar opened and a couple of freshmen stumbled in, the senior class stopping to glare at them. Tonight was a strict seniors' only event, no children allowed.

"We're not babysitters!" Someone yelled out and Neil shook his head, standing closest to the door.

"Out, kids. Senior year only in here."

"That's bullshit!" One of the freshmen grumbled and was met with someone else throwing a glass that shattered against the doorframe right next to said freshman's head.

"Out!" The freshmen stumbled out and back into the street and the party started back up, barely noticing the small glitch in the form of the young intruders.

"Think they got the hint?" Charlie quipped as Gaila trotted over, picking up Charlie's free arm and spinning herself underneath it before taking some of Jim's beer.

"I love the sun," She sighed as Jim reached out and pressed his palm to her forehead, the Orion threw him a wicked grin.

"I parade around in a bikini all day and you try to cop a feel _above_ the shoulders? Wow Jim, you're losing your touch," She joked airily, a green toned finger sliding down the bared bicep of their friend before signalling the bartender for another drink, "Extra cherries this time!"

"I don't go anywhere twice," Jim retorted, Charlie glanced up at him with innocent eyes.

"Then you may want to talk to one of the helm Cadets whose dorm is above ours – she seems to think –"

"I don't need to know. Okay ladies, I am about to go and select my tail for the night. Wish me luck," He winked over his shoulder as he disappeared back into the crowd, Gaila handed Charlie a drink that had so many cherries floating in the top that it was comical.

"Rodent tail?"

"I see him with a cute little tail like a monkey."

"He does have a cute little monkey butt," the girl agreed and both girls tipped their heads to the side in perfect unison to check out said monkey butt, giggling when they righted themselves a moment later.

"Oh, that can't be pretty," Gaila laughed, pointing over to where Bones, Rodney, Neil and a few of the other guys sat, a few of the slightly more, _bubble headed_ female Cadets had gone over there, their giggles high pitched and grating from over the other side of the bar. Charlie felt herself smile as Bones glared darkly into his nearly empty glass, quickly looking to Gaila.

"Feel like rescuing them?"

"You know me; I'm all for playing the white knight! We're like the Three Musketeers, except for there only being two of us and all," She puffed out her chest jokingly as Charlie ordered a few more drinks, they were placed in front of her and the two girls juggled them as they walked over to the table, smirking at the relieved looks that their friends shot them.

"Here," Charlie set a full glass in front of Neil and Bones as she fell into the seat that was made for her, Neil pressed a kiss to her cheek and Bones dropped an arm along the back of her seat, fingertips brushing her slightly burnt shoulder.

"You got a little burnt," She replied, her voice catching slightly when her fingers reached up to brush over his pink cheeks and slightly pink nose which he screwed up slightly with a smile. Her touch was as light as a feather and cooled his skin, he let his fingers trail over her shoulder a little more liberally now; her skin tinged with the same pink that he figured was tainting his cheeks and nose.

"So did you. As your Doctor, I should warn you against the dangers of the sun." He chided quietly, how was it possible to sound incredibly sexy with those words?

"Hypocrite." She merely murmured with a smile, dropping her head onto his shoulder and laughing at something Gaila said; the two getting caught up in the conversation around them.

****

Uhura smiled to herself as Heradee walked past and handed her a drink – it had been a good day. Admittedly, she hadn't really wanted to go on the Cadet trip in the first place but with Heradee, Charlie and Gaila refusing to take no for an answer and Spock being off planet for the weekend she figured that she didn't have much choice. But the day had been fun and the night looked as though it was easily following suit. She'd spoken to Cadets that she hadn't seen in quite awhile – the rush of classes, extracurricular activities and then trying to have a life on top of it left most amicable relationships strained, people who had been study partners or someone to sit with in classes were relegated to a brief chat in passing through the halls. Nights like this were a small step in patching up those gaps.

A year ago she would have been up, the life of the party with a drink in one hand and a guy in the other but almost unbelievably, Spock had mellowed her out. Not that she'd ever tell him that or she knew that he would enquire as to the 'tactics that she would employ on a night such as this without his influence' and put more thought into it than he needed. She was happy. Hell, she was ecstatic with her relationship although he sometimes worried (as much as a Vulcan could) about their cultural differences and the fact that she was still a Cadet.  
She was graduating soon and then the last one would stop at least.

Heradee was on the dance floor with Charlie and a group of female Cadets, Uhura could hear her shrieks of delight as they spun around and danced to a song that was quite popular at the moment. She was wearing Gaila's cowboy hat and waved her friend over, Uhura shook her head and held up her drink, signalling that she'd finish her drink and then be over thereafter. It would take a few more of... whatever it was that she was drinking to get her to the same level as Heradee, the girl who didn't go out much clearly making up for lost time.

"I need a drink!" Charlie called to Heradee who nodded, spinning around a few times to the song that was playing, the dance floor getting more crowded as everyone got a little more intoxicated. The bar itself was packed with locals as well as she edged her way out of the writhing masses and she couldn't help but mentally warn Jim against starting anything tonight - with most of the senior class on a bizarre bonding mission, the chances that any small bar fight could escalate hugely were astronomical.

She was walking behind a group of people playing poker when someone reached out to her and she smiled, seeing Bones sitting at the table with a few of their friends, Gaila included.

"Come here, you can be my lucky charm," He caught her wrist, pulling Charlie to stand by him and looking up at her with bright hazel eyes, "Gaila's taking me to the cleaners."

"You know she cheats, right?" Charlie replied with a smile, which was returned as he took a hit off his beer.

"I know. I also know that the two of you aren't allowed into any poker game on campus after a group of Lieutenants discredited you poker-wise,"

"We aren't playing for cash here. And it's only the Lieutenants who barred us, we still make a killing cheating freshmen. And a few Ensigns." Gaila piped up as Charlie moved to stand behind Bones, running her fingers through his hair before lacing them together on top of his head. He let his eyes drift closed for a moment at her touch before mentally giving himself a shake and opening them, glaring at his cards.

"That's fine, the Lieutenants got theirs." Charlie smiled cryptically and he tipped his head back carefully to meet her eyes, not wanting to disturb her hands.

"You're taking on officers now?"

"Always have. You're up McCoy." Gaila called, Charlie shot him a grin that made him smile for no reason, feeling a strange sense of loss when her hands slid from his head and squeezed his shoulders for a moment before she left.

Charlie quickly ordered herself a drink and threw it back whilst talking with a couple of guys from one of her classes before going back to Heradee on the dance floor, her friend grabbing her hands and throwing her a sly look as they danced.

"What?!"

"You know, his eyes soften when he looks at you! Everyone else gets the infamous glare!" Heradee yelled back over the music and although Charlie knew straightaway who they were talking about, played dumb though it was blatantly obvious to her roommate.

"Who?!"

"The tall, dark and handsome Doctor, you idiot! Who the hell else?!" Charlie just waved her away and dismissed the subject, used to her friends' ribbing about her crush. Uhura had the right idea by keeping Spock a secret though they were actually dating and he could probably get fired... She laughed when Heradee shot her a mocking glare, fed up with both of her friends' insolence and caught Uhura's eye as the third girl joined them.

"What?" Uhura yelled to Heradee who grinned and shook her head, dropping the subject but not before wildly indicating Bones and Charlie and pretending to shoot herself in the head with a gun made from her fingers. Both Uhura and Charlie laughed, Charlie dropping an arm around Heradee's shoulders.

"Frustrating you, are we?"

"You're both dense as fuck... but I love you!" She yelled as the song changed to a really old one but a great one, the three cheering along with the rest of the crowd and losing themselves, and the night, in the song.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** I told you it was fluff! But, don't quote me because I can't be arsed checking, this might be the last bit of fluff for awhile...  
You know, I had the hardest time describing George Kirk. It sucked. I mean, 'hot, fireball, dead' didn't really fit, it kind of sounded like his life achievements. And even calling him hot was weird. He needed the 'stache, that's why he died, the 'stache is his mojo. _

_**Huge shout outs to the best reviewers EVER:** FuzzyDeath, missjacklynsparrow, Larxenethefirefly, Hidden Relevance, Trekky17, Raxsah003, Vulcanvamp, VikingShadow, LunarEclispe,  
-Halceeon-, Canna, RachyDoodle, Fett012000, NaomiBlue and loquaciouslethality. You guys are so incredibly awesome. Trufax. _

_And also to VikingShadow, FuzzyDeath, Raxsah003, loquaciouslethality and Trekky17 for their PM's - you guys crack me up. Seriously, I love refreshing my inbox and seeing your random goodnesses there!_

_**Quick plugs:** 'When Fates Collide' is a collab I'm doing with FuzzyDeath. Charlie's there as is her OC Cierra, Bones is there, Jim is there as is an evil captain, a cute guy being used as a human distraction (there's a few of them going around), a Jim Kirk party, lions, tigers and bears - oh my! I suggest giving it a whirl, you may like it. Its the product of sleepness nights and discussions of the most random things ever...  
Also kids, there's a new story on the scene - Code: Dragonfly by Loquaciouslethality (a 'get better soon' to you and Sully!) and it's hysterical. Her 'Gailia the Slut Queen' is hilarious and her OC kicks ass. I highly, highly suggest mosey-ing on over there and checking it out. _

_After you read and review here, of course. :)_

Xx


	15. Lets Talk About Spaceships

_Hi! Here's the next part, sorry it's late - I'm on freaking crutches! I was being an idiot today and twisted my ankle. It gave me a chance to abuse a few Doctors and get yelled at for using my phone in X-Ray - Where was McDreamy when I needed him? McSteamy? Hell, I'd have taken McVet simply because he was D'Artagnan and Robin... Ooh, Denny... And I'm back. I'm hungry. _

_Disclaimer: I own everything. Happy Opposite Day everyone!! Although I really do own Charlie, Heradee, Neil, Admiral Turch, the half naked Cadet (Fuzzeh just got interested!) and Rodney. There's no Opposite Day there._  
_The chapter title is taken from the song of the same name by Say Hi to Your Mom. _

_Sing along if you know the words! Don't laugh, you probably do. :)_

* * *

It was a sunny day a little over three months before graduation when Kirk and McCoy left one of their classes and headed outside to their separate engagements, Jim walking with a spring in his step that wasn't usually there.

"Why are you so happy?" Bones asked as they walked down the front steps of the Academy, the steps of history that caused many a tear to the eye but was lost on the two boys as they crossed the lawns.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"No, I don't suppose you do."

"Hel_-lo_ ladies. I'm taking the test again." They both eyed two female Cadets who passed them on the steps, the last part of his sentence Kirk added conversationally which made Bones stop walking, looking at his friend and wondering for the umpteenth time that week if he needed his head examined.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

"Yeah, tomorrow morning and I want you there." That was it, Jim was insane. Bones had been made to take a few classes in psychiatry and although he'd hated them with a passion, even a first year could see that Jims behaviour just wasn't normal at all but he didn't seem to mind, bouncing on his toes and smiling widely again while McCoy felt a headache forming at his friend's insolence.

"You know, I've got better things to do than watch you embarrass yourself for a third time - I'm a Doctor Jim, I'm busy!" He grouched; Jim rounded on his friend with a look of determination painted into his pale eyes.

"Bones, it doesn't bother you that no one's ever passed the test?"

"Jim, it's the Kobayashi Maru, no one passes the test and no one goes back for seconds, let along thirds." Jim was about to plead his case, but a voice calling out interrupted them, probably for the better.

"James Tiberius Kirk!" Charlotte was crossing the gardens towards them and from the look on her face, was not happy about something. As it always did when she was around McCoy's mouth went dry and his stomach twisted, he was growing to like the feeling now that he was getting used to it. She stormed over and shoved Jim when she reached them, but her weight was nothing and the blonde guy didn't budge, looking at her with bemusement – clearly he knew why she was pissed.

"Tell me why the hell I've got to sit in your _third_ Kobayashi Maru test tomorrow? Third, Jim! I've got an exam in the afternoon; do you really think that I need to watch you fail the unpassable test for a third time again?" She snapped, Jim just laughed and shrugged.

"I like your company, Tex. Besides, you and Bones are at my helm." Kirk smiled winningly and rocked back on his heels, not missing the very slight blush that showed in her cheeks at being paired with the Doctor.

"What the hell for? Get someone else to do it!"

"You're one of the best." He shrugged; she looked like she was struggling not to shove him again.

"I've got an exam in the afternoon!"

"So?"

"Can't you have his head examined?" She asked Bones with a smile, he held up his palms in surrender.

"He's crazy. I know."

"Is that your professional opinion, Bones?" Jim joked, the Doc nodding.

"You're nuts. That better?"

"I've got to study." Kirk threw them both his trademark smirk and headed across the lawns, Bones rolled his eyes.

"Study, my ass." He muttered under his breath, Charlie smiled and checked the time, letting out a gasp quietly.

"Crap, I'm running late too. See you tomorrow, I guess." She rolled her eyes at Jim's diligence, although knowing that she was going to be working with Bones made the situation infinitely more bearable, though she hated to admit it.

"Third time. If he goes for a fourth, I'm going to need you help me hide the body." He told her, both considering the idea for a fleeting moment before laughing, heading off in opposite directions.

"And Bones?" She called when they were a few steps apart, he turned to see her walking backwards, he hated how all of his symptoms started up again – he'd just seen her, why did his mouth go dry all over again?

"Yeah?"

"I'd keep a slab in the morgue free for Jim if I were you." She smirked, turning back around and hurrying back towards the main building, he allowed himself the luxury of watching her leave, watching her walk away and watching how her hips swayed slightly and her hair blew in the breeze, how her book bag pulled her uniform a little tighter across the back, how her legs stretched on for miles. He turned and crossed the gardens in the opposite direction, mulling Jim's idiocy over in his mind, flinching as he passed the flagpole with a Cadet stuck to it, blindfolded and in his underwear. Crap, he was still up there? Bones was sure that Neil was supposed to cut him down that morning – the kid had welched on a bet and owed Charlie and Gaila a stack of credits. Eh, a little sun would do the kid good.

***

At the flight simulator bridge the next morning, Uhura sat at the communications channel, Rodney sat at the ammunition chamber, Bones sat at the helm and next to him sat Charlie with a tablet of her notes for her exam in her lap while they waited to start for the third time. No one was happy to be there and a few curses about Jim had been thrown around, the trifecta in failing not something that anyone besides their asinine friend wanted.

Bones leaned over and glanced at the information on the screen that she was engrossed in and his leaning so close to her jolted Charlie from her trance and she looked up to his eyes watching hers, in their usual smirk, "Andorian political system?"

"Admiral Archer is an ass." She replied, he pointed to the far left side of the fake bridge where Starfleet lecturers sat behind glass to administer Jim's test. For the third freaking time.

"Who is probably right behind there." He pointed, watching as her cheeks flooded with colour before she shrugged.

"He should know it by now." She grumbled, tucking the tablet away next to her as the test started, the view screen in front of them springing to life, simulating somewhere in the Delta Quadrant near the Neutral Zone. Her course had been set and soon, for the third time, Uhura's voice rang through the air, sarcastic and flat.

"We're getting a distress signal from the U.S.S Kobayashi Maru. Their ship has lost power and is stranded; Starfleet Command has ordered us to rescue them." She wasn't touching her com panel and her ear piece sat next to her, her arms folded over her chest as she eyed Jim – this was the third time that they'd been here and the third time that they were going to get hit, the third time that the ship was going to blow up and the third time that he would fail. Although he didn't seem to mind, swinging about in the Captain's chair, turning to Uhura with dancing eyes.

"Starfleet Command has ordered us to rescue them... _Captain._" He enunciated; everyone on the bridge tried not to roll their eyes and suppress their snorts of laughter.

"Two Klingon vessels have entered the Neutral Zone and are locking weapons on us." Charlie had to keep her eyes straight ahead when McCoy spoke, his hands, so large and so capable were running over the panel that they shared and causing her temperature to rise almost embarrassingly.

"That's okay." Jim brushed off the enemy's sudden appearance as though it really didn't bother him and a wave of disbelief rippled over the bridge crew, Uhura, Bones and Charlie exchanged a glance before Bones glared at Kirk.

"That's okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it." The captain assured his friend as more appeared on Charlie's screen, she wondered if the man in charge was going to bother with these mere details.

"Three more Klingon war birds de-cloaking and targeting our ship."

"I don't suppose this is a problem either." McCoy muttered, shaking his head as he operated the panel in front of him.

"They're firing Captain." As the bridge shook slightly and an alarm sounded overhead, it was clear that the "Klingons" were now going to destroy their "ship" which meant that with a couple more hits, they'd be theoretically dead, the test would be over and everyone could go to lunch. For the third time.

"Alert Medical bay and tell them to prepare to receive all crewmembers from the damaged ship."

"And how do you expect us to rescue them when we're surrounded by Klingons, _Captain_?" Uhura pointed to the view screen that showed five hulking Klingon ships staring down at them, weapons charged and firing.

"Alert medical." Jim repeated smugly, Uhura huffed and turned to her Com channel, hitting a few buttons harder than necessary.

"Our ships being hit... shields at 60%." Bones sounded distracted, his eyes focussed on his system and trying to keep his mind on the simulation and Jim's apparent psychosis, not the girl sitting next to him, her long fingers running over the screens in front delicately but with authority, Jim had been right – she was one of the best. They didn't share many classes but her talent was widely known and he was damn proud of her for it.

"I understand." Kirk pulled out an apple as his best friend swung around in his chair, Charlie could see that he wanted to start yelling but restrained.

"Shouldn't we, I don't know, fire back?"

"No." He took a noisy bite from the apple and barely glanced at the view screen ahead, Bones glared at the Klingon ships although it was clear that his frustration was at the person behind him.

"Of course not."

"And don't talk with your mouth full, Captain." Charlie tacked on quietly hearing a few snickers; Jim grinned at her and took another bite smugly in reply. Suddenly there was a glitch and the entire system went offline for a moment, the lights flickered and as quickly as it started, everything was back to normal. The Officers in the control box overseeing the test clearly weren't expecting the glitch either but seeing as everything returned to how it had been, there wasn't cause for anything to be halted at the moment.

"Hmm. Arm photons; prepare to fire on the Klingon War birds." Finally, Cadet Kirk looked as though he was taking some interest in the simulation, Charlie typed into her panel.

"Okay. Sorry: Yes, Captain."

"Jim, their shields are still up." Bones struggled to keep his patience at the best of times and today was no exception, his eyes narrowed as the simulated bridge took a few more hits.

"Are they?" Another noisy bite from the apple.

"No... they're not." Disbelief washed over Bones' face when he turned back to the readings in front, Kirk grinned.

"Fire on all enemy ships! One photon each should do it, let's not waste ammunition."

"Target locked and acquired on all Warbirds... firing." The ships ammunition chamber whirred to life, the sound of the photons hitting each ship and seeing each destroyed in the view screen and Charlie glanced back to see Kirk using his hand as a gun and pretending to shoot the ships in front of him. He really had lost it.

"All ships destroyed, Captain."

"Begin rescue of the stranded crew. So, we've managed to eliminate all enemy ships, no one on board was injured _and_ the successful rescue of the Kobayashi Maru crew is underway." He strutted around the bridge and clapped Bones on the shoulder, pulling Charlie's ponytail lightly before punctuating his obnoxiousness with another loud bite of his apple, looking over with everyone else on the bridge to where the test administrators looked down in a mixture of shock, panic and scepticism.

"You're right Doc – he is nuts." Charlie murmured to Bones who was frowning, looking as though he wanted to strangle his friend who jokingly did a small dance and took a deep bow, ignoring the perplexed and aghast looks from his "crew" and Starfleet hierarchy who looked on.

It was already determined that Jim had cheated - unless being in Captain of a ship suddenly required a brazen attitude and an apple to eat whilst five hostile ships stared into yours with their weapons ready to fire and incinerate the entire crew.

As the Admirals and lecturers filed in with puzzled looks, Charlie scooped up her things and checked the time – she had a half hour to grab some lunch and make it to her exam, scooping her things up and throwing her book bag over her shoulder, pulling the hem of her dress down in a trademark move, pausing for a moment as Kirk was flanked by the teachers, all of whom suspected him as a cheat and were firing questions at him, none of which he answered.

"Good luck on your exam." Bones smiled at her, his eyes were a bright hazel that sometimes looked more green or blue but either way, they were amazing. She re-tied her hair haphazardly and smiled, trying to edge around the crowd of Admirals berating their smug friend who grinned at her and held up his palm for a high five which she obliged, rolling her eyes but unable to resist a smile.

"Congratulations." He caught her hand for a minute and grinned, ignoring the people berating him and trying to figure out how their foolproof test was beaten, especially from a guy who wasn't known as a genius, more of a smartass.

"Good luck with your exam, see you tonight for celebrations?" He called after her as she ran out, waving over her shoulder and dashing through campus to grab some form of sustenance; rumour that Jim Kirk had aced the Kobayashi Maru was spreading like wildfire amongst awe-struck Cadets and Officers alike. Admiral Archer sat behind his desk when she skidded in, taking a paper from the pile and finding her seat, falling inand tapping her PADD a few times to bring up her notes. Life since the bar fight sure had been a little more exciting, who was she to think that in their senior year anything would be less eventful?

The sun was bright when she left her exam, sliding her sunglasses on as she crossed campus to the mess hall to meet everyone, she was feeling pretty good about her result, she'd finished the exam and had a chance to read over everything and it didn't sound crazy. Admiral Archer was usually a hard marker though especially when it came to anything Andorian, he took it pretty personally and truth be told, Charlie was slightly in awe of the Admiral even if he was a jerk to her in class sometimes. That she could handle, a failing grade she couldn't. Besides, the Admiral had taken Charlie under his wing somewhat and there was a begrudging mutual respect there.

"Cadet Houston, a moment if I may." Scary Admiral Turch stopped her as she crossed one of the gardens; she nodded and racked her brains as to why he wanted to talk with her.

"You were a part of Cadet James Kirk's crew this morning for his Kobayashi Maru test, is that correct?" He asked; the light bulb went off over her head.

"Yes Sir."

"At the personal request of Cadet Kirk?"

"As I believe Sir, whoever is taking the test may select up to six of the crew he uses. I can't tell you if Cadet Kirk requested me or I was rostered, Sir. I don't know."

"You're friends though, are you not?"

"I like to believe so, yes Sir."

"So logic would state that you were chosen by the Cadet, rather than rostered by the Commander."

"Logic would also state that I'm very good at what I do and my Commander knows that." She wasn't trying to be a smart ass and she wasn't trying to stick up for Jim but she hated being interrogated, as Admiral Archer walked over to the two she nodded at him.

"Admiral Archer."

"Charlie. Fine work on the Andorian exam just then, I had a chance to look over your paper and I must say; I enjoy your theories of diplomacy in regards to their political hierarchy. A very well written piece," He commended and she beamed, knowing that an A would be coming her way, "I apologise Admiral Turch; I didn't mean to interrupt your conversation with the Cadet." Archer added, directing his speech to the other Admiral who smiled, shaking his head.

"Not to worry. We were just discussing Cadet Kirk's success in the Kobayashi Maru this morning."

"Ah yes. I heard about that – I wonder how he got around it?" Both Admirals glanced questioningly at her and Charlie shrugged, feeling her patience thinning.

"I have no idea Sirs."

"You know that he's facing academic suspension, right?" Admiral Archer asked her, Charlie swallowed hard and tried not to roll her eyes – whatever the hell Kirk had done, he'd gotten himself in deep this time and she was being interrogated for it. Not for the first time, but Christ.

"The hearing will be in three days, at 1600 hours. It is expected that as a person who bared witness to the event that you will be present." Admiral Turch instructed firmly, Charlie nodded and watched as the two Admirals smiled and walked off before she turned and ran through the rest of the gardens, bursting through the doors of the mess hall and glancing over its crowded tables before her eyes rested on her group of friends, pushing her way through.

"Hey! How did your exam go?" Uhura asked; Charlie barely heard her, glaring at Jim.

"Did you know that you're facing academic suspension and there's a hearing scheduled in three days?" He didn't seem bothered which she wasn't surprised at, Gaila gasped and turned to him.

"They think I cheated." Jim told her easily, Bones rolled his eyes as Charlie sat.

"Imagine that," He murmured sarcastically, Jim frowned suddenly.

"Wait – how did you know about the hearing?"

"I just got cornered and interrogated by Admirals Turch and Archer. Turch was asking if you requested me on the bridge or of I was rostered, it was unnerving. What the hell did you do?" She whined and he smiled winningly at her; Neil shook his head, laughing.

"Man, they are going to string you up. How did you do it?" He asked; Charlie had a feeling that was all that anyone had asked Jim all day and when he looked at Charlie and smiled again, she felt chills shoot down her spine. That was the smile that read that he'd done something and now he needed something else, everyone at the table exchanged a glance.

"Remember how you lost your notes for your Bio mechanic engineering on subroutines last week?" Jim asked her, Charlie realised all at once a stack of things that had happened and gasped, her jaw dropping as her eyes rounded, nearly falling from her skull.

"The ones that I turned our dorm and Uhura and Gaila's inside out for? You stole them! Oh my god..."

"You managed to put a subroutine into the Kobayashi Maru program? Are you insane?" Heradee asked; Charlie felt her stomach churn.

"You stole Charlie's notes, broke into the program and managed to install a subroutine – that glitch that happened whilst _Captain_ here was enjoying his apple was it kicking in, not a power surge like we'd thought. You simply deleted the Klingon shields; making it able for us to attack." Uhura concluded quietly, a frown crossing her features as she spoke, Charlie glared at him but felt a grin tugging at the corners of her lips - it was so typically James Kirk that she wanted to equally punch him and laugh at the gall of the guy, a smile finally breaking through.

"They weren't class notes you stole dumbass; it was a theory on the restructure of a subroutonic program embedded in a transmission – no wonder I got cornered! Admiral Turch is my freaking professor!" She was almost shrieking, the girl genius panicking that the smart ass rebel had more than likely dragged her into his attempt to beat the system, he smiled and sat back.

"At least you know it works, Tex. Will you keep your voice down? I don't want everyone knowing how I did it."

"How did you get into the program anyway? It would have been encrypted." Neil asked, the blonde at the centre of the mess smiling slyly.

"There's an engineering tech with a very nice set of – "

"Stop! We don't need details. What I want to know is how did you get Charlie's notes in the first place? She literally turned the campus upside down for them, our room is still trashed."

"Sorry." Charlie interjected quietly, Heradee continued.

"We thought that someone had been in our room, remember? Not last night, the night before. The night that you lost your notes, remember you were trying to find your skirt?" She asked, both girls eyes growing wide as McCoy smiled, enjoying the mental image of Charlotte wandering around without a skirt before glancing at the girl in question, seeing her jaw dropped once again.

"I'm going to kill you, Jim! I'm going to rip your aorta out through our bladder and pull your intestines out through your nose!" She shrieked, Jim winced and looked to Bones although he was laughing slightly.

"Sounds painful... is that possible?" He asked the Doctor who shrugged, watching the exchange with amusement as he ate his food.

"Not too sure, but if anyone can do it, Charlie in a pissed off mood would come close. I'd watch her Jim; she looks intent to pull some kind of innards out of some kind of hole."

"You broke into our room... you went through our drawers!" Both girls blushed beet red and the entire table snickered, Jim smiled slyly at Heradee before quirking his eyebrow at Charlie.

"You are a very naughty thing, aren't you? I tell you, I didn't have you figured –"

"Stop talking this instant or I cut out your tongue." Her voice was harsh and Bones felt his temperature rise, sliding his eyes over her form slyly, the conversation doing very little for the already heightened sensations that he felt when she was around.

"What did you take?" Heradee asked suddenly and if possible, Charlie paled even more, her skin a ghostly white although her cheeks were a blazing pink.

"Nothing at all ladies."

"What did you take and is it going to be put on display or kept for your personal collection?" Heradee asked again, her voice even like she was talking to an infant which many would argue that she was. Jim and his insane need for attention – McCoy watched the scenario warily, making sure that neither of the girls was going to launch themselves across the table in an attempt to kill their friend. He really didn't want to patch anyone up at the moment and this conversation was actually interesting to him for once.

"Personal collection, definitely. Remember, we're the ones who have to defend you two when all of the creepy perverts see what they're missing and make a move. I've got a hearing to worry about, no time to kill 99% of the male student body here."

"I'm going to need some of that Ale now." Charlie murmured to Uhura who nodded, standing and smoothing out her skirt, glaring at Jim as she snatched her things.

"You are unbelievable. How did your exam go, Charlie?"

"Oh, I think I aced it. Archer liked my theories. Warning Jim? Break into our room again and I'm cutting off your favourite appendage to add to _my_ collection."

"See, that threat would ordinarily mean something but I'm a little busy imagining you in the red lace I saw in your drawer." He smirked back and for a split second it looked as though Charlie might actually go through with her violent threat, Bones' mouth went dry at the thought of the girl who haunted his thoughts in red lace. Damn.

"Why don't you keep the Ale in your room?" Ken asked in a blatant attempt to get the conversation away from where it was heading, Uhura and Charlie stomped off, leaving Heradee to glare at the centre of the whole mess who was laughing, clearly proud of himself.

"Because it's highly illegal and clearly our dorm isn't as secure as we thought."

"I tell you Bones make a move on that – you are a very, very lucky man." Jim murmured in his best friends' ear, constantly frustrated with the Doc as to why he wouldn't act on the feelings that were clearly aimed and reciprocated with Charlie, why the two couldn't get their act together. Bones was stubborn and so was Charlie – graduation was looming and neither were going to start anything so close to when they would more than likely be stationed at opposite ends of the galaxy, possibly even further. Any comment that Jim made about it was given the darkest glare from Bones which told him that he was pushing it and this time was no exception but really, after all of his snooping Jim did look at Charlie in a different way – she was Tex, a girl who was surprisingly similar to him but in the most different way possible, he looked at her like a sister but damn, he couldn't help but check out the curve of her ass as she and Uhura crossed the mess hall, getting a punch in the arm from Bones.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** Naughty Jim. :) Fun fact for those of you playing at home: Every chapter, until this one, was only three chapters long in my original draft. Hmm, gotten sidetracked much? Hope that's okay!! _

_Have you read 'When Fates Collide'? Charlie's boyfriend is a grade A asshole who is cheating on her, Cierra doesn't take too kindly to that, Jim takes a little too kindly to Cierra and Bones... well, he's Bones. Hotness and all. Do you honestly think that FuzzyDeath and I would write anything but? _

_**Huge, el massive-o thankies to the best reviewers on terra firma**_ _- Trekky17 (now 18, Happy B'day!), FuzzyDeath, Canna, Hidden Relevance, NaomiBlue, missjacklynsparrow, LunarEclipse, Vulcanvamp, SarahWeasley (welcome aboard, hun!), Yayyou, Raxsah003, fafinette, RachyDoodle, Larxenethefirefly and Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar - you guys are legen - wait for it - dary. I am living in hope that Neil Patrick Harris is going to say that at least once when he hosts the Emmys._

_Also to Larxenethefirefly, FuzzyDeath, loquaciouslethality and Viking Shadow for their PM's! It makes me love my inbox. Cyber - hugs and cookies!! _

_~~~ Reviewers get the satisfaction of making me applaud the screen in your honour! :) ~~~_


	16. The Wreckoning

_**Hi!** I'm so sorry for the late update - but:__  
__In the space of one week, I've managed to sprain my ankle, give myself concussion, get a phone that I have no idea how the deuce to use and end up in the middle of the countryside wearing my bikini and a pair of gumboots at four am. And I'm not a country girl by any stretch of the imagination.  
Okay yes, the ankle and the concussion were my fault (I jumped off a roof to bust my ankle and smacked myself in the head with a surfboard at the beach when I wasn't supposed to be surfing) so they may be construed as karma... but really. _

_Therefore, I am living in a bubblewrap suit and not touching blunt objects until the new lunar cycle. _

_Anyhoo, here we are! We're nearing the end of the story, I've got a question for everyone - do you want a sequel? I've got a billion ideas which could take us into a threequel, but if I write it, will you guys read and review it? Let me know... _

_Disclaimer: By now you should know 4 things: 1. I like to type. 2. I don't own Star Trek. 3. I am the Queen of Sheeba. 4. I have no idea where or what Sheeba is, just that it's a saying.  
The chapter title is a song of the same title by Boomkat. Taryn Manning will forever be the girl who got hit in the face with a skateboard in Sons of Anarchy. Ah, Jax. I don't like Tara though._

_Here we go again! _

* * *

The next couple of days were full of whispers of how James Tiberius Kirk, of all people, had managed to beat the Kobayashi Maru - it was one of the greater mysteries in life how Jim Kirk managed to stay in the top 10% of his class and manage to get his Cadetship done in three years instead of four, though he probably could have done it in less – cramming his studies into two years would have meant no time for the finer things in life.

Still, it was common belief around campus that somehow he had cheated, yet that still elicited an awestruck response.

The night before the hearing he had left their shared dorm with a sly grin, Bones knew that he'd be running in a few minutes before breakfast and crossing another girl off the list, academic suspension be damned. Since the blonde man was cooked enough to think that he could get away with short circuiting the Kobayashi Maru for his own personal gain, McCoy was going to drink for the both of them.

He'd had a tough week, been up to his elbows in Delorian innards for the most of the day and it looked likely to continue the next day – there was no way that he was doing it again without a pounding hangover. God forbid, the hearing tomorrow would give him a break from Delorian autopsies; just enough for him to watch his best friend more than likely get tossed out on his ass.

"Deserves it." He muttered to himself, pushing the door to a local bar next to the Academy open and ignoring the couple of Cadets who sat in the back and looked to him for a greeting when he entered. Aside from them and a couple of locals the place was empty which suited him fine, falling onto one of the stools.

"What can I get you?" A pleasant voice asked and he looked up to see an attractive redhead polishing a glass in front of him.

"Kentucky Bourbon. Neat."

"Shall I make it a double?"

"Please." She was fairly cute and he didn't usually go for redheads, brunettes were his speciality barring a certain blonde who stole most of his thoughts unknowingly. But he and Charlie had become friends and there was some things that you didn't mess with – no matter how cute she was when she was angry or how tired she looked when she'd been up studying all night or how sexy he found her when she sauntered around in the short that women had to wear – no one wore it like Charlie Houston.

"Damn it." He murmured to himself as the glass was placed in front of him, acknowledging the bartender in thanks with a weak nod.

"You look like you've had a long day." The girl told him as he took the first sip of his drink, feeling the smooth burn down his throat and wincing slightly when it burned his stomach, satisfied that with a few more of those, he might be able to stop thinking.

"I have. And it's going to be a long day tomorrow." He didn't really think that she was talking to him for any reason than she was bored and his answers were barely to her more so murmurs to himself, a reminder why he was drinking – to rid himself of the vestiges of the shitty day and the shitty situations that he'd found himself in.

"Why? What made it bad? You know, they say that talking about it can cure even a broken heart."

"I don't have a broken heart." He didn't think he did at least, the Bourbon not burning anymore now that the same path that every drink took was numbed which was exactly what he was hoping for. He looked up to the girl and saw that she was smiling and he tried to ignore it, it was clear that she was flirting with him but was it what he wanted? Truthfully, he knew that after a few more of the glasses that sat in front of him he would end up having to stop himself from staggering over to the girls' dorm and... he didn't want to finish the thought of what he'd do to Charlie because then all of his resolve would go down with his next drink and he was a doctor, not a lothario.

"Am I going to have to ask you point blank to tell me what's made you wander in here? People are supposed to pour their hearts out to bartenders; you're not letting me do my job." She chided, he had to give her points for persistence. And she was cute, flame red hair tied back into a ponytail with a purple ribbon and dark blue eyes that were a contrast to her pale skin, freckles dotted across her nose and the tight t-shirt that she wore showing off a cute body.

Besides, nothing was going to happen with Charlie, he was unintentionally doing a damn good job of that.

He stared into his glass for a moment longer before smiling back, she refilled his glass wordlessly, watching as his eyes met hers warmly - exactly what she'd been hoping for since the gorgeous man had stepped through the doors of the bar.

"I'm Lily."

"Bones."

"Cruel parents?" She guessed with a smile, he downed more of his drink.

"I'm a Doctor." Hadn't he just said that? Or had he thought it? This girl needed to keep up. She poured herself a drink from a fancy bottle and lifted her glass to him before taking a drink, fixing her eyes onto his.

"Is your day bad because someone died?"

"No. I was up to my elbows in Delorian... bodies for most of the day and my best friend is facing suspension tomorrow for stealing... well, being a jackass." He almost unravelled the whole story, finishing his sentence with '-for stealing notes from the girl that I like...' but it sounded juvenile and stupid and like he was in junior high all over again, so down went the rest of his glass and she filled it again without being asked, earning her more points.

"Delorian?" Clearly she knew very little about the goings on outside Earth and he couldn't make up his mind whether that was a good thing or not, shrugging and halving the amount of liquid in the glass in one gulp, satisfied when his vision blurred slightly.

"Species. Starfleet." He pointed at himself for the last part of his blunt sentence and she pulled a face and had some more of her drink, shaking her head as the alcohol hit her.

"You're in Starfleet? I'll try not to hold it against you." She retorted and he cracked a smile although it was an insult and down went the third glass, then the fourth... somewhere between the fifth and sixth another barmaid came in and he and Lily took a booth up the back, somewhere after that a few drinks more, they were stumbling back to his dorm in a mixture of drunken kisses, shedding clothes and fervent praying that Jim had crashed elsewhere for the night.

His head was pounding and he felt the bed shift slightly not of his own accord, taking a second to open his eyes before seeing Lily at the foot of his bed, dressing with a smile that grew as she saw him wake.

"Good morning." She leaned down and pressed a kiss to his lips that in hung over hindsight and the fresh reality of day he wasn't sure that he wanted but was too tired to complain.

"Morning." He mumbled, wiping a hand over his face and turning to look at the clock, taking a second because his eyes were still blurry but sighing heavily when he saw that if he didn't get up now, he was going to be late for the day if he wasn't already.

"Am I going to see you again?" She asked feebly and Bones nodded which didn't help his head any, knowing that he would end up gracing the bar again, more than likely by accident but he was sure that he would.

"Sure – " He didn't get a chance to expand which he was glad for, the door burst open and Kirk strode in, stopping dead in his tracks as Lily pulled her sweater over her head hurriedly, blushing from head to toe.

"Well hello there. Good morning." The only thing that could make Bones' hang over worse was Jim's teasing voice, he quickly climbed from his bed and pulled some boxers on, glaring as harshly as he could at his roommate whose features were as tired as his but dancing with delight at the scene in front of him.

"Jim, Lily. See you later Lily." He didn't care if he was being blunt, the girl smiled and dashed from the room as Jim turned to his roommate with a wide, sly grin.

"A redhead? She's cute!" Kirk grinned again, McCoy felt his hang over worsen and rubbed his temples, grabbing his clothes on the way to the shower, knowing that he'd be stopping by the infirmary to get rid of the hangover before he went to class.

***

The auditorium also housed some of the higher level graduates and professors in charcoal tunics and black pants and a row of Admirals and Starfleet boards lined up along the front. People had been talking about the hearing since Jim had taken the test and now Charlie looked at the students filling the seats and wondered what could be traded for a seat in the auditorium and mentally cursing her missed chance. As it was, she and Gaila had cleaned up at a poker game run by a few Ensigns the night before and she had a shipment of Ale due sometime in the next few hours and still a few pre-payments to collect.

She and Uhura sat side by side in the fifth row of students and over the opposite side of the auditorium to where Gaila and Heradee sat, Gaila leaning forward to flirt with a couple of guys in the row in front of them.

"Seriously, does she ever stop?" Uhura murmured as Charlie tossed her hair over her shoulder, nervous for their friend facing the Starfleet Education boards' wrath in a manner of minutes, proudly brought to you by her stolen notes.

"Remind you of the reason that we're all gathered here today?"

"I should have replicated us some popcorn. Ooh, there's Spock – doesn't he look cute in his uniform?" Her friend whispered, pointing subtly to the Vulcan that sat a few seats away from Heradee, his shiny black hair and pale complexion set into an impassive mask as he spoke to another professor in the same charcoal tunic. Cute wasn't necessarily the word that would best describe the man, but Charlie smiled anyway, nodding.

"He does. Where's Jim? I thought he would have been here by now."

"He's probably going to make an entrance – you know, space jump onto the roof?"

"I was thinking that he'd more than likely pull the fire alarm or ditch the whole thing altogether."

"It's getting me out of my Xenolinguistics lecture so I'm slightly grateful. Who would have thought? The dumbass actually did something worthy of praise for once." Uhura and Jim had gotten off to a bad start the first few times that they had met. They were friends, the two volatile towards each other most of the time although there was an underlying respect. A very begrudging mutual respect.

"Let's wait until the verdicts in before we call that one." Charlie murmured, twisting around to see Jim and Bones sitting a few rows back, ignoring the lurch that her heart gave and the flutter of her stomach turning itself inside out at seeing McCoy there. Bones saw the girls waving and offering looks of sympathy to the man of the hour who looked slightly nervous and was fidgeting which was a rarity and his eyes were troubled, fixed on a blank spot on the back wall.

Both men looked down and smiled thinly out of nervousness at Charlie and Uhura, before a handful of Captains entered the auditorium, Charlie could practically hear Bones curse as he dragged a hand through his hair. He looked tired, a light dusting of stubble across his jaw and his eyes were hard as he sized up the Starfleet hierarchy at the front of the room, murmuring and pointing out different Chancellors and Admirals as they discussed them, obviously trying to find the ones who might be on Jim's side. He was blinking as though to keep himself awake, both girls turned back to the front and Uhura nudged her friend.

"Bones looks... what's the term?"

"Tired?"

"I was going for sexily dishevelled, you know, the kind that makes you want to rip a guys clothes off him here and now?" The dark skinned girl grinned evilly, Charlie bit her lip and bit back the wide smile that wanted to break free, conceding defeat in that pool.

"Yes he does."

"Why don't you go there?" Uhura prompted, knowing the answer and having had the argument a million times before but never being satisfied with the answer. Though she wanted to slap the both of them... or at least get them drunk enough to have a one night stand and get it over with. They were two of the smartest people that she knew but were complete and utter idiots when it came to each other and it was infuriating to be around.

"Because we're graduating soon and will end up on opposite ends of the galaxy, because we're friends and anything else would ruin our friendship, because I like him but I honestly don't think that he likes me like that, because he's out of my league... want me to go on?" Charlie ticked her grievances against her fingers as she spoke and waved them in her friend's face, Uhura rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

"You need your head examined."

"By a Doctor?" Charlie quipped, both girls giggling quietly as the Academic Review was called to order and both sat straighter in their seats, afraid of their friends' future in the Academy.

Most of the time, whatever Jim got himself into, one of them could get him out of it. Bones had healed him more times than anyone cared to remember, Charlie had an academic knack that had found loopholes for most of his indiscretions, Gaila's engineering prowess had proved to be useful in the past and the stern words of reason from Heradee, Neil and Uhura had always been duly noted – though rarely regarded. However, as the auditorium reached maximum capacity and the multitude of Cadet Reds looked sombre and more military than the Academy was regarded as, Jim's career within Starfleet balanced on knife's edge.

Nervously, Charlie chewed on her bottom lip and exchanged a worried glance with both Heradee and Gaila over the other side of the packed auditorium. She could practically feel Jim's nervousness hitting her in waves and her stomach knotted sickeningly, it was her turn to fidget now – she tapped her leg and toyed with her hair, she rubbed at her tense neck and clicked her nails against each other until Uhura slapped her hands so she settled into clenching them into fists over and over again.

Not that any of this was doing Bones any good. He hadn't had a chance to cure his hang over yet and was cursing his own existence, kicking himself when he looked at Charlie and felt _guilty_ for his actions the night before with... it was a flower...crap...Rose?...No... Lily? That was it, he had skipped most of his botanical lessons unless they were being used for herbal remedies and even then, Dr McCoy had very strong opinions that raged with people chewing on branches to cure the most simple of things. It was equivalent to living in the Stone Age.

He and Jim had sat in the filling auditorium and the first person he'd seen was the back of her head, her hair was curly today and hung down her back in waves that could hypnotise even the cold hearted – he was proof, wasn't he? – and when she turned to Uhura and started chewing on her lip, he had to look away. Something had to be said for restraint and he was starting to lose it, focussing on Jim's pending review and pretending to himself that he didn't notice when she rubbed her neck, pretending that he didn't long to be those hands or to have those hands on his skin.

"This session has been called to resolve a troubling matter. James T. Kirk, step forward." One of the main chancellors called the hearing to start and called Jim to the front, he walked past the two girls on his way down the stairs to the front of the room, his eyes meeting theirs and betraying himself when they could read his nervousness - that was unnerving within itself.

"Cadet Kirk, evidence has been submitted to this council suggesting that you violated the ethical code of conduct pursuant to regulation code 17.43 of the Starfleet code. Is there anything that you care to say before we begin, Sir?" Both girls held bated breath that their friend wouldn't use this opportunity to be a smart ass but even he was being professional at the moment, the severities of the proposed suspension starting to seep in.

"Yes. I believe that I have the right to face my accuser directly." The room was silent and as a figure over the opposite side of the auditorium stood, both Uhura and Charlie felt blood drain from their faces, glancing at each other with identical looks of horror as Spock stood, tugging on the hem of his tunic to keep it straight. He said nothing and didn't move except to stand, the Chancellor beckoned him down to the front where Jim was standing behind a small podium.

"Oh my god..." Uhura breathed, Charlie felt her jaw drop.

"Spock?! Your mystery Spock is the guy who's behind this dog and pony show for Jim?!"

"We don't discuss work related topics – it's his rule! I didn't know!" Uhura hissed back, both girls' faces had drained of colour – not that this piece of information changed anything, just made the situation a little more awkward, that was all.

"Step forward, please. This is Commander Spock; he is one of our most distinguished graduates. He's programmed the Kobayashi Maru exam for the last four years. Commander?"

"Cadet Kirk, you somehow managed to install and activate a subroutine in the programming code thereby changing the conditions of the test." At Spock's accusing words Charlie slid down in her seat slightly, feeling guilty although she had nothing to do with Jim's theft, let alone his "cheating" of the test. Typically, Jim just shrugged slightly and kept his tone conversational when he replied.

"Your point being?"

"In academic vernacular, you cheated." The Chancellor stated and as a low ripple of chatter went through the crowd, Jim glared at said Chancellor and stood with hands behind his back, as did Commander Spock on the opposing side of the theatre.

James Kirk did not like to be called a cheater. He had found a means to an end, found a loophole – never cheated.

"Let me ask you something, I think we all know the answer to, the test itself is a cheat, is it not? You programmed it to be unwinnable."

"Your argument concludes the possibility of a no win scenario."

"I don't believe in no-win scenarios." He tried his winning smile at the line of Chancellors and professors but they were nearly all male, the two females on the panel old and wrinkly, neither of their facial expressions softening in the least.

"Then not only did you violate the rules, you failed to understand the principal lesson." Spock's tone was accusing for a Vulcan and his dark eyes studied the other man facing the panel, as though the how and the why to his actions was written on him somewhere.

"Please, enlighten me."

"You of all people should know, Cadet Kirk, that a Captain cannot cheat death." Charlie didn't know if she was imagining it or not but the Vulcan looked slightly smug and at his comment there was a faint rumbling through the seated crowd and Jim looked steamed, clenching his fists tightly behind his back in a restrained attempt to keep his composure.

"I of all people?"

"Your father, Lieutenant George Kirk assumed command of his vessel before being killed in action, did he not?" Yup, the Vulcan definitely looked smug, it was clear that he wasn't impressed that someone had cheated his test, now he was looking to get revenge, take Kirk down .

Some might say that it was illogical, but Charlie was thinking with her feelings and not wanting to see her friend get into trouble though the Vulcan would more than likely argue that every action violating a rule had a punishment. Which was more than likely true – for anyone that she didn't care deeply about.

Meanwhile, Jim clearly didn't like his father being brought up; especially by a guy he had never met yet seemed to know his entire life story. Or at least his fathers.

"I don't think you like the fact that I beat your test."

"Furthermore, you have failed to divine the purpose of the test."

"Enlighten me again." Jim snapped, his eyes blazing and his fists behind his back white from being clenched so tightly, the Vulcan ten feet away from him the picture of perfect calm.

"The purpose is to experience fear. Fear in the face of certain death, to accept that fear and maintain control of oneself and ones crew. This is quality expected in every Starfleet captain." Silence hung in the air and Charlie felt tears prick her eyes – damn it Jim, why the hell did he have to be such a stubborn ass? He could have shut up and accepted the Kobayashi Maru as the unpassable test and be done with it, but in true Kirk fashion he'd turned the situation upside down and now looked resigned, as though Spock's reasoning and logic was getting to him.

She wanted to urge him to fight, she wanted to glare at Spock, she wanted to stand up and defend Jim publicly because although she would never have had the gall to pull off the stunt that he had, his reasons and _his_ logic was sound and he had a point...warped and illogical as it may have been. It was valid.

"Excuse me Sir." A Yeoman walked brusquely over to the Chancellor and handed him a data pad, the older man's dark skin creased into a serious frown and his dark eyes looked troubled immediately, quirking the interest of nearly every person in the room who wasn't too busy sweating Jim Kirk's future in Starfleet.

"We've received a distress call from Vulcan. With our primary fleet engaged in the Loredian system, I hereby order all Cadets to report to hangar one immediately. Dismissed." That definitely wasn't what anyone was expecting to hear and the sea of Cadets in their tell tale red uniforms all clamoured for the exits, talking in hushed but excited tones but parted for their leaders to cut through the crowd hurriedly.

Uhura watched as Spock spoke quickly, quietly with a few of his colleagues and she could practically hear his smooth voice without the slightest fluster or panic over the rising buzz throughout the auditorium, before turning on his heel and leaving with another man that she didn't know.  
Her eyes hadn't left him for the duration of the hearing, which looked to be temporarily put on hold, but as he spoke to a few of his Professor peers, she could see the slight rigidness of his shoulders, the slightly tense way that his jaw was held and the curiosity mirrored in his dark eyes – Vulcan's didn't believe in showing their emotions but over their time together, she had learned to read him like another dialect that she was studying.

"Whatever's gone down on Vulcan, Starfleet's freaked. Come on, we've got to get to the hangar." Charlie urged, standing and pulling Uhura lightly – a couple of the Admirals and a Chancellor had been glancing to her almost pointedly throughout the hearing and she now knew without hesitation that a few of them suspected her of lending Jim a knowing hand in the simulator.

"Yeah, let's get out of here. Come on, we can catch up with Jim later." Uhura agreed as the two joined the tail end of the Cadet stampede for the doorway, seeing Jim still down at the podium that he had been at for the hearing. Now he leaned on it, an imposing figure, visibly seething.

"Want to get him and get out of here? He can't risk not reporting for duty on time." Uhura hissed to Bones as he descended the stairs against the flow of students, he nodded and raked his hair from his eyes again.

"Maybe we should –" Charlie paused, ready to go down and comfort Jim, engage in a slanging match over Spock and the Chancellors but Uhura grabbed her hand and shook her head harshly, Bones' eyes met hers.

"No, you guys go – we'll meet you up there." With a light squeeze to her shoulder as he passed and a near buckle of her knees as he did so, Uhura all but pulled Charlie from the auditorium whilst Bones reached Jim who could barely speak through furiously clenched teeth.

"Who the hell was that pointy eared bastard?" He asked angrily, unabashed fury pulsating throughout him – he wanted that Vulcan dead where he stood – how _dare_ he bring up his father? Punish Jim if need be, but don't use his father as an example. That was the lowest blow that could be struck.

"I don't know... but I like him!" McCoy joked sarcastically, Kirk cracked a smile and the two followed the last of the Cadets out of the building ready for god knows what.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** So... We met a certain Vulcan dude. Are there any Spock shippers that read this? Just curious. Actually, is everyone who reads this a Bones shipper? I'm really curious about that one. Can you let me know? That would be awesome... _

_**A huge, massive, over the top thank you and ninyi mwamba (that's 'you rock' in Swahili unless the translator at is deciding to censor me again) to the following peeps:** FuzzyDeath, Trekky18, Hidden Relevance, Larxenethefirefly, Vulcanvamp, WinchesterWench, Raxsah003, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar, Steff7, VikingShadow, Canna, thebloodrose, Yayyou, loquaciouslethality, NaomiBlue, RachyDoodle, Jac Danvers, mello-chic (I completely agree – Designers, take care of Andre!), Fett01200 and PinkTribeChick (welcome aboard!) - you guys are all the stuff that serious legends are made of. Belee 'dat. _

_**Also to:** FuzzyDeath, Trekky18, Steff7, loquaciouslethality, mello-chic and PinkTribeChick for their PM's, I totally and utterly heart love seeing your messages in my inbox. I like to think that it keeps me sane... though Fuzzeh, some of our "convo's" are kind of evidence for the opposite... :) _

_**Don't stop - plug time:** (In my head, that sounded like MC Hammer, fyi) 'When Fates Collide' is a collab that I'm doing with FuzzyDeath and, spoiler alert!, a guy is about to get assaulted with a kitchen utensil. It's not as crackish as it sounds, I promise, but Charlie and Bones are there, Jim and Cierra are there, Captain Pike stops by to say hi and a guy named Travis is up to no good with a girl named Erin. Or Erica, who is a tramp. Not of the cute cartoon puppy variety either.  
__You can find out who the deuce Cierra is (if you don't know already - shame on you!) by reading FuzzyDeath's story Relapse. It's the third in a trilogy (behind Rewritten and Remean), they are epically awesome and come highly recommended!  
And don't forget loquaciouslethality's story Code: Dragonfly. Her OC's are awesome and Bones is currently in his pj's! 'Nuff said. _

_Please, pretty please review!_

Xx


	17. Prophecy

_Hi! Sorry again about the delay in posting, no injuries to excuse me, just a long ass chapter that I apparently wrote when I was asleep. It may as well have been written in crayon and apparently I ramble - I was trying not to this chapter, ended up with some really crappy crap and decided that I like my rambleness. Thankies Fuzzeh for showing me the light! :) _

_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek, or any of its affiliates. I do own Charlie, Heradee, Neil, Rodney and any other character never mentioned in any published fiction (or non) previously.  
The quote at the top of the page is taken directly from dictionary(dot)com. No copyright infringement is intended.  
__See, I can write like a serious adult at times. Y'all were waiting for the punch line in that disclaimer, weren't you? ;) _

_The chapter title is taken from a song of the same name by Remy Zero. It is one of my absolute favourites of all time, if you listen to it, hope you like it! :) _

_Here we go! _

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**Godspeed:  
**_**–noun: **__Good fortune; success (used as a wish to a person starting on a journey, a new venture, etc.)  
__**Origin: **__1250–1300; ME, in the phrase God spede may God prosper (you). See __God__, __speed_

She had never understood what 'Godspeed' meant. Well, she knew, but she hated that before missions or dangerous drills, it was what the officers always said. Why did they never say it before a tough exam? They were just as make-or-break in Starfleet; the only difference was that blood was rarely spilled.

Did someone say 'Godspeed' to her father before he was killed on duty by a bunch of bloodthirsty Klingons, making him leave behind five children?**  
**Did someone say 'Godspeed' to George Kirk as he cleared his ship and threw himself into an evil bastard's flying lair at the moments after his son was born?

Godspeed had a lot to answer for.

The hangars were bigger than the campus themselves when all put together, large garage like spaces that housed shuttlecrafts and runabouts that ran the trip from Earth to the Space Dock outside Earth's atmosphere where the fleet ships docked between voyages.

It wasn't unusual to see smoke emanating from any of the less used hangars, courtesy of an engineering project gone wrong and not done in class under the watchful eye of a professor. Most other students avoided the sheds unless they had to, but as organised chaos in the form of a bunch of eager Cadets descended, more than a few wished that they were a little less enthralled by the huge space and could look a little less wide eyed when they were trying to be cool and pretend that their first mission, albeit rushed, wasn't a big deal.

She found her commanding officer and fell into line next to Gaila, squeezing Uhura's hand as she passed. The other woman looked grim, her eyes hard and her lips set into a firm line, Gaila pulled a face.

"She's on a mission – look out whoever cops that wrath." She grinned, bouncing up and down on her toes, clearly excited by the whole process playing out ahead of them. As their Commander listed off names and assignments Neil stood in front of them, clearly checking out the ass of the girl who stood in front of him. It made Charlie chuckle silently – he was clearly spending too much time with Jim – she kicked his heel lightly and rolled her eyes jokingly when he grinned back at her.

_" –Truman! Gerace, Farragut! Houston, Enterprise! Hollings, Albatross!"_ Her commanding officer's voice cut through the air and at her name Charlotte's head jerked up, a chill went through her body. She'd been assigned to the Enterprise?

The USS _Enterprise_ was the Federation's new flagship and this was its premature maiden voyage. It had the latest and greatest weaponry, technology; it was Starfleet's baby; its unused pride and joy.

It was the ship Charlie thought that she might want to be assigned aboard when she graduated and part of her working so hard and taking so many classes was to make sure that she cemented her place as one of the best, one that the _Enterprise_ crew, any crew, couldn't live without. To be stationed on there, if only momentarily was a feat.

Her commanding officer finished reading out the list of names and their hasty assignments off a data pad and when he reached the end of the names on there, glanced over the crowd of eager young faces.

And then there it was, the word that sent chills down her spine:

"Godspeed."

"Ugh." She muttered under her breath, Gaila turning to her straight away with a roll of her eyes and a grin, bouncing on the balls of her feet happily.

"I know you hate that word for some obscure reason, but the one time they don't say it is the one time something really bad is going to happen. It's tradition, okay? Deal with it." She chided with a grin, kissing Charlie on the forehead and dancing off towards the shuttles leaving for the _Farragut_, calling 'Godspeed, biatch!' over her shoulder and blowing a kiss to one of the officers who glared at her as she passed.

"Look out Farragut with that thing at its engines. The _Enterprise_? You're totally banging Archer, aren't you?" Neil joked as they watch Gaila dance off, Charlie slapped his arm.

"I totally am. I told you that I'd do whatever – or whoever – to get to the top. You got the _Albatross_?"

"If I'm lucky, Head Helm. Come on; let's see what's got the Vulcan's robes in a twist."

"Maybe someone cracked a smile."

"Or sneezed. Catch you on the flip side!" He laughed, pressing a kiss to her cheek and jogging after another friend who passed, she felt a pang of nervousness when she couldn't see Jim or Bones anywhere. Those boys were good at creating a stir and had almost identical flairs for trouble and ... well; she didn't want to go off on their first mission without seeing them.

One more glance around and a heavy sigh, she turned on her heel and headed for the shuttles going to the _Enterprise_, ignoring the CO who muttered 'Godspeed' to every Cadet that boarded. She felt her lip curl and refrained for launching into a tirade over it - it was just a combination of frayed nerves from Jim's hearing and being exhausted, she'd probably get a chance to grab some sleep on their "mission" because chances were it was a false alarm.

The shuttle that she was on also carried a friend from a few classes and they sat side by side, talking idly and keeping their voices low in the almost silent shuttle, Charlie trying not to let nerves or thoughts get the better of her. The ride in the small shuttle was turbulent and as Ivy nudged her to get her first view of the _Enterprise_ in all of its brand new gleaming beauty, Charlie felt the vestiges of the so far awful day start to slide away as they neared the larger than life ship; she glanced back to see Earth in all of its glory, the blue seas and green lands looking peaceful and serene in its innocence.

That was the last time that she would ever look at Earth the same way.

****

Bones had gotten onto the _Enterprise_ in a blur - Jim's damn academic suspension supposedly keeping him grounded, the hypo sprays and dragging his friends' ill carcass onto the shuttle... seeing the _Enterprise_ in all her glory for the first time... hiding Kirk from the pointy eared bastard who by luck had ended up on the Enterprise too - it was already starting to wear McCoy thin over the top of his hang over.

Jim was whining something about being itchy (even as a Doctor, he didn't want to know) and passed out the second that Bones stabbed him with a hypo spray. He probably could have foregone the sedative but already, Jim's nagging was making him wish that he'd left him back on planet.

Leaving Jim sprawled ungraciously across a bio bed McCoy changed quickly and acquainted himself further with the Chief Medical Officer onboard, Dr. Puri. The CMO was a kind man and although Bones knew that he was supposed to use this mission to learn as much from his superior as possible, the man's bedside manner made McCoy's lip curl – unwavering friendliness at even the most insolent of questions, the guy had to be taking something from the medical supply closet.

"I don't think it's his _skills_ that you need to observe," Nurse Chapel told Bones with a grin when she heard the younger Doctor grumbling under his breath at their superiors' disposition, her smile infectious.

"My bedside manner is perfectly fine." He replied, narrowing his eyes as she let out a bark of laughter, glancing at the rest of the nurses who were simpering around the place.

"That's a good one – way to lighten the mood. Okay, wish me luck; let's see what these bitches can do." She grumbled herself, having been given a variation of first year nursing students, only one other fourth year and a handful of the years in between – all of the women in white staring each other down. Nurses were notoriously bitchy and these girls seemed as though they'd uphold the tradition just fine.

"Chapel, I have complete faith that you are able to out bitch the lot of them." He quipped as she started across the infirmary, throwing him a smile over her shoulder.

"Is that some of your 'perfectly fine' bedside manner there Doctor?" Bones shot the Nurse a dark glare,wondering if it was worth his while even getting on the ship – the chances of them getting anything other than an Ensign from Engineering with a paper cut was slim to none.

His mind travelled to his friends, wondering which ship they'd been stationed to and what their posts were. If posts were determined by aptitude with the most capable on the _Enterprise_ then Charlie would definitely be aboard at least - she was the girl genius... though it was suspected that she may have had a hand in Jim's Kobayashi Maru stunt, if she had been punished and slipped down the ranks, then Starfleet were too stupid to comprehend.

Aptitude and all other wise, he was the best Medical Cadet; the best pair of hands that Starfleet Academy had. Dr. Puri could learn a bit from him - namely not to suffer fools which the rest of the medical team looked.

Sighing, he checked over the tri corder calibrations - It was going to be a long day.

****

Charlie found an information panel and typed in her name to find at which post she'd be stationed, reminding herself to act calm and cool no matter what – this was a spur of the moment trip, a spur of the moment post and beared no weight on where she would end up after she graduated.

Though she was one of the few who still had no idea where she wanted to be stationed after graduation, she nearly broke into song and dance when next to her name were the glorious words that she would never forget: _Houston, Charlotte A. – Enterprise, Tactical, Bridge. _She was going to be on the _Enterprise_ Bridge? At tactical?

She threw her duffel into the room that she was sharing with god knows who and changed quickly, the yellow gold mini dress and the same black boots, she was glad to be out of the red – the Cadet uniform was hideous to her and every day for the past three years she couldn't manage to like it or feel remotely cute in it, but this yellow? This was something she could work with.

She practically skipped to the turbo lift on her way to the bridge to report for duty although the chances of needing any tactical were slim to none; it was still the fact that she was going to be the very first tactical officer that the USS _Enterprise_ ever had made her beam. There were a few other Cadets in the lift when she stepped in, reaching forward to hit the button for the bridge, one of the guys let out a groan.

"You're on the bridge? I knew that I should have paid more attention in class."

"Where did you end up?" She asked politely, his face was familiar but she couldn't remember where from exactly whether they had a class together or not, he pulled a face.

"Warp conduit management."

"Hey, it's engineering, isn't it? I got Mess Hall duty." Another Cadet piped up; there was a ripple of sympathy for him as he laughed bitterly.

"Suppose I shouldn't have dated Chancellor Barnett's daughter, should I?"

"Dating her wasn't the problem, sleeping with her friend wasn't the smartest move." A girl remarked and Charlie giggled, rolling her eyes jovially.

"Messed with the wrong girl, dude. It's not like we're going to see any action anyway, Mess Hall is probably where it's all going to be at."

"Well, if you want to send Jim Kirk up to me in Astrometrics, feel more than welcome – I can think of a few ways to kill the time." The other girl told Charlie who laughed, shaking her head as the hearing which already felt like days ago echoed through her mind.

"I think the chances of Jim getting on this ship are highly unlikely after that assault in the Auditorium. What a load..."

"I don't know... did he cheat? Really? I'm in the Medical bay so I get Leonard McCoy to keep me company; I'm hoping to practice my mouth to mouth. Wish me luck girls!" Another girl called slyly, waving over her shoulder as the doors opened on the same deck as Medical was, Charlie felt her hands clamp into fists at her sides and she wanted to chase the whore down the hall and threaten her to within an inch of her life. There were _plenty_ of other males on board, Bones was off-limits. Besides, this was their first voyage on the _Enterprise_, the first time that any of them had been called to active duty; couldn't these girls keep their minds on the task at hand for more than 10 seconds?

"Here I go," The guy who was in the Mess Hall murmured as he got out on his floor, his turbo lift comrades all bidding him farewell and good luck, calling out for him to save them some of their favourites, the guy calling back that all chocolate shakes were on him... until he nearly crashed into the chest of a senior officer and paled by three shades, scuttling off to his duty.

The next few floors were like that, the small group who had probably never been in the same room before suddenly joking and laughing, the Cadets clearly still top of the pile no matter where they had been posted, being on the ship itself an accolade.

Two floors away from the bridge Commander Spock stepped into the turbo lift and although her blood turned to ice, Charlie wasn't sure how to react. She knew him because of Uhura but his argument with Jim earlier was still ringing in her ears and she couldn't help that she was furious with his bringing up Jim's father. It was a testament to her friend whose fists usually flew first that he maintained his cool up there... well, as much as he did, anyway.

"Cadet Houston. I understand that you are at the position of Tactical on this mission."

"Yes Sir."

"It is indeed reflective of your record and talents."

"Thank you Sir. I'm excited about it, looking forward to the opportunity." Was he complementing her? Fair enough, it _was_ a coup but to have it recognised by the Vulcan? Or was he just being nice because she knew about his illicit affair with a student? Or did he feel guilty for shanghaiing Jim?

"Being in the presence of Captain Pike is a valuable educational tool for any Cadet graduating soon. I trust that you will learn much from him." He continued, Charlie didn't think Vulcans bothered with small talk forced a smile anyway, inwardly groaning.

Captain Christopher Pike.

Damn it. She'd been trying ever since her arrival at Starfleet to avoid Captain Pike like the plague – rumour had it he ate Cadets for breakfast - screw up with him and you were as good as space junk. However, he was the best and she wanted to serve under him one day so needed to not to piss him off before then. Admittedly, being friends with Jim had made that somewhat difficult as had her numerous shipping and cargo charges and violations, but academic wise, she was clean as a whistle and grade A Cadet meat.

She tried to remember how to speak and act human around the Commander who didn't falter, didn't abbreviate his words and stood still, straight and tall in the turbo lift, she had to be careful not to mimic his commanding presence, excuse the pun.

"I hope so, I'd like to definitely be considered for the _Enterprise_ at some point after I graduate." She told him as the doors opened and for the first time in her life, Charlotte Houston stepped onto the bridge of the USS _Enterprise_.

It was a big moment and as the people already on there went about their duties, she bit her lip to keep from smiling, seeing Commander Spock next to her, the man whom she recognised as Captain Pike smiled over at them. He had a kind face which she knew covered his bite; his reputation preceded him.

"Mr Spock." He greeted, his eyes brushing over Charlie, their expression unreadable.

"Captain. May I introduce Cadet Charlotte Houston, our tactical officer for this voyage." Spock surprised her; the Captain shook her hand, recognition sparking in his eyes.

"The illustrious Charlie, Michael Houston's girl." The mention of her father jolted her from her dream beginning on the bridge, she nodded.

"Yes Sir. He was my father."

"It's nice to finally be introduced. He was a good man; we were close friends."

"Thank you Sir. I'm sure he'd find you and I on the same ship quite humbling." She had no idea, she'd never met either of the men before – what was she supposed to say? Captain Pike studied her for a moment with seriousness behind his blue-grey eyes, finally letting out a smile.

"Goddamn. I've got no idea how the Academy survived the next generation of Kirk and Houston, your fathers were quite the troublemakers in our day."

"I'm pleased to report that on the Kirk side, things are yet to change Sir," She replied, taking her seat and flicking onto the Com, looking back to the chortling Captain, "Engineering reports ready for launch."

"Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, the maiden voyage of our newest flagship deserves more pomp and circumstance than we can afford today. Her christening will just have to be our reward for a safe return. Carry on. All decks, this is Captain Pike. Prepare for immediate departure. Helm? Thrusters." The Captain walked around the bridge and looked each crew member in the eye before sitting and letting the last part of his speech filter through the ship, the comm. system fresh land new and no static like all of the other ships would have dealt with. The helmsman's hands ran over his Conn panel and he glanced back at the Captain, keeping his cool for a guy who was flying the brand new flagship out of the space dock for the first time ever.

"Docking control reports ready, thrusters fired. Preparing to separate from Space dock."

"The fleet has cleared space dock, Captain. All ships ready for warp." Spock spoke up from his Science controls in the back of the bridge, Captain Pike nodded.

"Set a course for Vulcan."

"Aye aye captain. Course lay in." The helmsman's voice was a little more excited now; nearly everyone on board was smiling broadly and watching through the view screen when they weren't occupied with their own tasks for launch.

"Maximum warp. Punch it." Captain Pike looked as excited as everyone else, his eyes crinkling at the corners and he wouldn't look away from the sight in front of them, nor would anyone else. Charlie had to clench every muscle in her body to stop from shrieking with pride, wondering if she'd ever get used to the feeling of pulling out of space dock, of adrenaline coercing through her veins.

In the large black view screen that took up the entire front of the large room, the entire bridge crew could see the other fleet ships launch into warp and disappear into a streak of coloured light, blending in amongst the stars, the air on the _Enterprise_ wrought with anticipation. As the engine of the _Enterprise_ whirred underneath them and the excitement, anticipation of it all reached fever pitch, the engines suddenly cut and the ship stalled like a 21st century manual car dropping a gear.

Everyone on the bridge paused and turned to look at the now embarrassed Helmsman, Captain Pike stifled both a groan and a giggle, noticing for the first time that the guy he thought was supposed to be sitting in the chair was nowhere in sight.

"Lieutenant, where's Helmsman McKenna?"

"He has long worm sir, he couldn't report to his post. I'm Hikaru Sulu." The guy was young and of Asian appearance, he had a calm face and a friendly smile, Charlie knew immediately that girls went crazy for him. He smiled and didn't look embarrassed at his stalling the ship, turning back to his consol, hitting a few buttons.

"And you are a pilot, right?"

"Very much so, Sir... I'm not sure what's wrong here..."

"Is the parking brake on?" Captain Pike guessed good-naturedly, Helmsman Sulu smiled, shaking his head and not letting anything get to him.

"Uh, no. I'll figure it out, I'll just –"

"Have you disengaged the external inertial dampener?" Commander Spock's voice was calm and again, almost smug as it cut through the air and had he not been nice to her and introduced Charlie to Captain Pike minutes ago, she would have started to feel contempt for him regardless of his dating Uhura. Helmsman Sulu stiffened visibly and reached for something, not saying a word or turning to see who had spoken (like that calm voice could have come from anywhere else), the engine whirred back to life and the crew geared up for a second time.

"Ready for warp Sir."

"Let's punch it." Captain Pike tried it again and this time, the ship jarred slightly and took off, becoming one of the streaks of light, actually going faster than. Charlie stopped herself from letting out a cheer and a couple of the Cadets exchanged grins as the turbulence stopped, it was as though they were cruising slowly, not moving faster than the speed of light. It was incredible.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** *waves innocently* Bye kids, have a safe trip! Godspeed! :)  
So, we met Moncapitan Pike. He's a funny bugger. Also, I know nothing about the bridge, not gonna claim to - I know that tactical is usually Security, but cupcake was a little busy, kay? :)  
__The next couple of chapters will be mondo long and (hopefully, if I can pull my finger out) posted fairly soon within each other. Well, that's the aim - no hunting me down if I fail! _

_**Massive, muchos thanks to the bestest reviewers on the planet:** Canna, Fuzzeh, loquaciouslethality, WinchesterWench, Hidden Relevance, Three Faint Calls,  
-Halceeon-, Larxenethefirefly, Steff7, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar, LunarEclipse, mello-chic, crystalclear8050 (welcome aboard!), Trekky18, VikingShadow, Jac Danvers, Vulcanvamp, RachyDoodle, Raxsah003, PinkTribeChick, ayachan1412, loudmist and Yayyou, you hombres are the best. 'Nuff said. _

_**And 'love you bunches' to the best PM's that make me squee when they drop into my inbox:** FuzzehDeath, Canna, WinchesterWench, mello-chic, loquaciouslethality, crystalclear8050, VikingShadow, PinkTribeChick, DamienThornLover666, Trekky18 and Hse Hissie. _

_Don't forget! 'When Fates Collide', the collab that FuzzehDeath and I write together. (Though my muse is being a deadbeat lab partner at the mo', epic apologies Fuzz. I'll go and beat down a car with an umbrealla, apparently it gets the muse rolling?) Anyhoo, y'all should read it - Charlie's being a sulky cow at the moment. But she did stab a guy, so it's okay. :) _

_Is there anyone that you want to die or survive at all in this story? Just curious, because I don't want to write someone a buttload of chapters if everyone is like 'Ugh! Kill the pig!'  
(And no, VikingShadow, sorry hun, line to comfort Bones should Charlie find herself in a deaded pickle forms here! :) *points over shoulder*) _

_**Reviewers get a bunch of pretty flowers tied with a pretty bow! ** (Cyber flowers, I take no responsibility for anyone harassing local florists should said flowers not arrive!)_

Xx


	18. One Crowded Hour

_Hi!  
Here's the next installment and like I said, it's muchos long. Sorry kids! Hope you don't mind...  
__Quick note: I've "adjusted" bits of the story to fir into my Universe, but only minutely. Also, when Chekov speaks, I can't be bothered sitting here and trying to talk like him so that I type with an accent (sounds weird, but you know what I mean!) so only the really obvious things will be Russian. Sorry again! Maybe later... ?? _

_**Disclaimer:** I don't own Star Trek. If I did, the phrase 'Naked Tuesday for hot boys only' would be more than a dream... I do own Charlie, Heradee, Neil, Gaila, Rodney, Ken, sick Cadet and past tense Lieutenant.  
The chapter title is one of the greatest songs ever - 'One Crowded Hour' by Aussie band Augie March taken from their album 'Moo You Bloody Choir'. The song fit this chapter perfectly._

_Here we go!_

* * *

"_May I have your attention please? At 2200 hours, Starfleet detected an anomaly in the neutral zone, what appeared to be a lightning storm in space.  
Soon after, Starfleet received a distress signal from the Vulcan High Command that their planet was experiencing seismic activity.  
Our mission is to assess the condition of Vulcan and assist in the evacuation if necessary.  
We should be arriving at Vulcan within three minutes, thank you for your time." _

The announcement had gone out over the entire ship courtesy of the second guy at the helm, a kid by the name of Chekov who had a thick Russian accent and a baby face with large, innocent blue eyes. Charlie had heard Captain Pike call him a whizz kid and that was the only explanation for someone his age, in his position, on a ship such as the _Enterprise_ – the kid had to be a genius. Idly, she wondered what he specialised in and made a note to talk to him at some point, if a whizz kid was going to be her competition then she needed to start looking into alternative paths...

She sighed and turned to her panel, there wasn't much for her to do but she wanted to look busy and it gave her a chance to go through some of the ships diagnostics and force all thoughts of what Jim's fate would have been back at the hearing should the distress signal not have come though.  
It was almost poetic – Jim Kirk was going head to head with a Vulcan, it looked like he was going to lose, but the Vulcan distress signal had saved his ass.

Almost on cue, there was a thunderous sound outside the bridge and the entire bridge crew looked over as the man of the day, Jim Kirk barrelled onto the bridge with Bones and Uhura racing after him, all three yelling but at what couldn't be deciphered.

Bones was in the blue medical shirt, Uhura in the red for engineering and linguistics, Jim in the black pants and undershirt, no colour over the top to distinguish his department. It was quite a scene and Charlie felt a pit in her stomach form – she gulped and wondered what the hell her three best friends had taken to make them barrel onto the bridge of the Enterprise while the ship was in warp... or at all, rather.

"Sir, we have to stop the ship!" Jim yelled, as Captain Pike dove up, glaring at the younger man whose hands were abnormally large and puffy for some unknown reason. At his outburst, Charlie slapped her palm to her forehead - what the hell was he doing?

"Kirk, how the hell did you get on board the Enterprise?"

"Captain, this man is under the effects of a serious reaction to a vaccine–" Bones cut in between both men, Jim shook his head and tried to silence his friend who wouldn't listen.

"Bones! _Bones!_"

"- he's completely delusional, I take full responsibility." Whilst Pike looked like he was about to blow a gasket, yelling at the both of them, all three men talking at once, Bones' accepting responsibility for Jim's actions a stupid thing to do, although Jim's hands looked like a reaction to something...

"Vulcan isn't experiencing a natural disaster, its being attacked by Romulans!" Jim suddenly yelled above everyone else, the entire bridge went quiet and if Captain Pike had been in Jim's corner before, the silent voice in the Academy making sure that he didn't get booted, he sure wasn't now. Although his demeanour was calm, it was clear that Jim was pushing the envelope big time.

"Romulans? Cadet Kirk, I think you've had enough attention for one day. McCoy, take him back to medical, we'll have words later." The Captain growled ferociously, Charlie watched as Bones grabbed his friend by the elbow, his hazel eyes harsh and aimed angrily at Jim who struggled against him to no use.

"Aye Captain." Bones muttered, Jim started again, incessant and pressing like he did when he was passionate about something – he got like that over very few things and was a side of him not many saw.

"Sir that same anomaly –"

"Mr Kirk is not clear to be on board this vessel." Commander Spock stood and walked to stand with Captain Pike, Jim and Bones, Uhura standing a few steps back with a mixture of smugness and frustration at the group. At his arrival to the scene Jim rolled his eyes, the two men speaking over the top of each other.

"Look I get it, you're sorry I argued about your test and I'd love to do it again sometime –"

"This is against Starfleet regulation and I can remove the Cadet –"

"Try it! This Cadet is trying to save the bridge!" Jim suddenly snapped loudly, he rarely yelled but Commander Spock was talking too, recommending to Captain Pike that the Cadet be forcibly removed from the ship. It was clear that the unemotional Vulcan was anything but a fan of Jim Kirk and Charlie got the distinct feeling that the Commander's "removal" would entertain the idea of the nearest airlock rather than the brig.

"By recommending a full stop mid warp during a rescue mission?" There was that damn logic again, an almost repeat of the scenario in the auditorium only an hour or so earlier.

"It's not a rescue mission, listen to me, it's an attack –" Jim tried again.

"Based on what facts?" Commander Spock shot back, a harsh edge to his voice that was absent from the untrained ear, but after watching two Spock versus Jim spats in the space of one day, Jim Kirk's friends could now pick out the sharpness in the Vulcan's words when aimed at their friend.

"That same anomaly, that lightening storm in space that we saw today also occurred on the day of my birth. Before a Romulan ship attacked the USS _Kelvin_. You know that Sir, I read your dissertation. That ship which had formidable and advanced weaponry was never seen or heard from again. The _Kelvin_ was attacked on the edge of Klingon space and last night there was an attack. 47 Klingon War birds destroyed by Romulans, Sir. It was reported that the Romulans were on one ship, one massive ship." Jim was deadly serious, a mixture of seething at the Vulcan Commander and looking earnest at Captain Pike, Charlie let out a quiet gasp and realised that her friend might not have been as crazy as first thought - barring the puffy hands of course – searching through some files that she needed, letting out a quiet, strangled cry at what she found.

"And you know of this Klingon attack how?" Captain Pike glared at Jim, who looked over his shoulder to where Uhura looked slightly put out that she was being dragged into the latest mess.

"Sir, I intercepted and translated the message myself. Kirks report is accurate." It pained her to say it was clear to see, Charlie looked over to her captain, her eyes not looking to any of her friends.

"Captain? I've pulled the logs and distress call sent from the USS _Kelvin_ on Jim's birth date and compared them with the distress call from Vulcan today, as well as the transcript from the destroyed Klingon fleet – all three descriptions of the lightning storm are virtually identical."

"You believe this?" The Captain asked Charlie who nodded, still not looking to her friends and trying to keep the conviction in her voice.

"Yes Sir."

"We're walking into a trap sir, the Romulan's are waiting for us; I promise you that." Both Captain Pike and Kirk glanced at Commander Spock for his opinion on the matter, it was clear that he wasn't too impressed and although his emotion didn't show, his dark eyes were slightly more harsh than impassive for a Vulcan.

"The Cadets' logic is sound. And Lieutenant Uhura is unmatched in Xenolinguistics; we would be wise to accept her conclusion." He finally stated in his formal tone, avoiding Uhura's eyes and glancing at Charlie who was avoiding her friend's eyes for the time being, afraid that she'd giggle or glare or _something_ that would make the situation seem like another day in the Academy. Captain Pike took a deep breath and seemed to weigh the evidence quickly, pointing to the Communications panel.

"Scan Vulcan space, check for any transmissions in Romulan." There was an edge to the Captains voice with his order, Charlie scanned through the logs that she'd vouched for once more to make sure that she was right – chances were if they were wrong, there was going to be a trip to the brig for the four, a court marshal for Jim and if Spock had his way, court marshal via airlock. The Cadet behind the Communications panel looked worried at being addressed, his face paling visibly at Captain Pike's orders to him.

"Sir, I'm not sure that I can distinguish the Romulan language from Vulcan." Charlie rolled her eyes impatiently and decided that the dude could share Jim's airlock, glancing to Uhura and either Captain Pike saw or made the correct deduction, turning to the girl.

"What about you? Do you speak Romulan, Cadet...?"

"Uhura. All three dialects, Sir." She was proud of that fact and why she hadn't been put on the bridge in the first place instead of the pale faced dumbass that had been was beyond stupid.

"Uhura, relieve the Lieutenant."

"Yes Sir." She slid into the seat and put her earpiece in, sliding her eyes to Charlie; there was a masked delight there that would be shared at a later date.

"Lieutenant Miranda, hail the USS _Truman_." The Captain ordered with he, Spock, Bones and Jim all standing in the middle of the bridge, their faces a mixture of anger and confusion at the whole day – it had already been fraying their nerves but now this was just getting out of hand.

"All of the other ships are out of warp Sir and have arrived at Vulcan... but we seem to have lost all contact." Another Cadet muttered quietly in a whiny voice that made Charlie want to go over there and check her work – incompetence, in this potential situation, could get them all killed.

"Sir I pick up no Romulan transmission... or transmission of any other kind in the area." Uhura's voice was confident and clear, although somewhat confused. Finally Charlie looked over to Jim and Bones to see both men watching her right back, she held their eyes for a moment as they tried to figure out what came next; Jim was the first to speak, shaking his head.

"That's because they're being attacked."

"Shields up, go to red alert." Captain Pike's voice was resigned as he sat in the Captain's chair, yet to be the best seat in the house for any action, although as the lights dimmed and glowed red and an alarm went off over the ship, everyone took their posts and prepared for something they had no idea about.

"Prepare to arrive at Vulcan in five seconds... four... three... two..." Charlie glanced back once more to see Jim and Bones again, Bones glanced at her once more as he headed back to Medical Bay and from then on, Charlie was going to remember that she went into her very first battle mentally chastising her three best friends and wondering what the hell kind of venereal disease Jim had caught this time to make his hands as large and puffy as they were.

*

The Enterprise came out of warp with a jolt and was immediately hit by a piece of floating debris, everyone on the bridge stumbling and bracing themselves as the ship shook and jarred.

"Emergency evasives!" Captain Pike barked loudly as the bridge crew all focussed on their own tasks at hand, yelling and calling out to each other with pieces of information that were as horrifying as a situation could get. Status reports were called for from every department as the ship jarred and shook, Charlie assumed that they were being hit but nothing was showing on her screens, just that there was more space junk in the sector than she had ever seen.

Glancing at the view screen for a few moments it hit her as another large piece of debris knocked the ship – that space junk was the rest of the Starfleet vessels. The _Truman_, the _Albatross_, the _Farragut_... all seven ships aside from the Enterprise, all seven ships that couldn't be reached for contact moments earlier were debris in space, their crew... if there were any survivors in that scrap heap they were very few and didn't have long left.

The bridge was loud with people yelling out orders and replying to their own, the ship took quite a few hits and then jarred and shook even more, throwing the _Enterprise_ crew about. They flew under the adrift and heavily beaten saucer section of one of the adrift Starfleet ships with Helmsman Sulu more than proving his worth when it didn't take out all of the top decks of the Enterprise, the only ship still functioning coming up underneath the wrecked ship to see possibly the largest ship that Charlie had ever seen.

It was black with tentacles like a vicious sea creature; a jellyfish that was at least 10 times the size of the _Enterprise_. The entire bridge fell silent for a moment and jaws dropped, it looked nothing like a Romulan ship but had singlehandedly destroyed the Federation fleet as well as 47 Klingon ships only a few days previous.  
It was going to be the cause of many nightmares from many people to come.

As the debris of the Starfleet ships floated in front of them, almost taunting within itself as an example of what would more than likely happen to them; Charlie felt bile rise into her throat, swallowing painfully as not to throw up on the bridge then and there. She was frozen in fear like most others were – in front of them; in those pieces of ship were their friends, their families, the people who had shared their lives for the past few years. All dead. She felt like she was going to be ill, names and faces dancing in her memory – Gaila, Heradee, Neil, Rodney, Ken... they were dead. If there was some miracle that they weren't, then they were laying the wreckage and probably in so much pain...

Slowly, as though any fast or conscious movement would have them killed where they were she looked over to where Jim stood, the two exchanging a look; both able to see the frozen fear in the others' eyes as their minds processed the severity of the situation. She wasn't sure how she was breathing but clearly was, Charlie turned back to her console and started filtering through the readings that were hitting her on the alien vessel that had been responsible for the savage attack on the Starfleet vessels, more than likely the death of Jim's father. Taking a deep and shaky breath she tried to make sense of the readings, hanging her head after a moment because the screen was starting to swim in front of her eyes, not because of tears but because she was too afraid to blink.

"Captain, they are locking torpedos." The only calm voice in the room was the Vulcan which really didn't mean much; Captain Pike was barking orders to everyone but gripped to the arm rests of his seat until his knuckles were white.

"Divert auxiliary power from the port nacelles to the forward shields!" Pike called and Charlie started getting reports in from the rest of the ship – they had been hit hard, the top decks crushed by another ship, space junk floating and hitting various decks and stray weapons fire taking out large chunks too. Invariably, there would be casualties in the masses aboard the ship that they were on. As soon as that thought ran through her mind, the Enterprise shook badly with what had to be weapons fire, she as trying to scan their ship to see if the alien vessel had been hit at all but so far, it looked as though none of the other Starfleet ships had managed to get a shot off.

"Sulu – status report!" Pike called as he, like everyone else fell from their chairs, clamouring to stay upright and injury free. And alive of course, but in current situation, the odds looked futile.

"Shields at 32%, their weapons are powerful; we can't take another hit like that!"

"Get me Starfleet Command." Was Pike's demand and Spock turned back to look at the Captain, not as cool and calculated as he normally was.

"Captain, the Romulan ship has lowered some kind of high energy pulse device into the Vulcan atmosphere. Its signal seems to be blocking our communication and transporter abilities."

"All power to forward shields, prepare to fire all weapons." Charlie sent the coordinates to a place of the scanned Romulan ship that looked to be their weakest, looking over to the weapons Cadet.

"On those co-ordinates."

"Aye Miss." Was the reply from the pale faced Cadet whose name she couldn't remember, Charlie glanced to Jim who glanced to her, his eyes wide with determination. This was retribution for his father's killer and the chance that Jim too would meet the same fate as his father by the same hand. Charlie wanted nothing more than to give him a hug then and there.

"Captain, we're being hailed." Uhura whirled around to look at the Captain and the view screen as it changed from a picture of the carnage inflicted on their friends and colleagues to a large and burly Romulan man with a shaved head and facial tattoos, pointed ears and arched eyebrows.

"Hello there." His voice, for all the terror and murder that he had inflicted, wasn't evil - it was almost friendly in a businesslike way which was even more confusing... even scarier. No one could take their eyes from the view screen as the entire bridge met their potential maker, sensors scanning the alien ship and what they could of the man's physiology to be sent back to Starfleet should they ever get the chance.

"I'm Captain Christopher Pike. To whom am I speaking?" The Captain's voice was sharp but not aggressive, clearly his training in the Academy (no matter how long ago that training was) had been prudent.

"Hi Christopher, I'm Nero." The man sounded like a child greeting a stranger and it sent chills down Charlie's spine as he bowed his head respectfully, she saw Sulu and the Russian kid (Chekov?) at the front of the bridge both with their spines straight in fear and the younger boy's hands shaking before he folded them in his lap like a schoolboy.

"You've declared war against the Federation. Withdraw and I'll agree to arrange a conference with Romulan leadership at a neutral location." Pike continued; Nero's face clouded.

"I do not speak for the Empire. We stand apart. As does your Vulcan crewmember, isn't that right _Spock_?" He looked past Captain Pike to Commander Spock as the young Vulcan stood, everyone on the bridge looking to him, confused. Was this some kind of Romulan/Vulcan death match? Charlie looked over to Uhura whose face had drained of all colour when her secret beau stood, pulling down his tunic in a businesslike manner much like he had in Jims hearing... she had lost track of how long ago that had been.  
Jim glanced to Charlie to see her looking a rough shade of green with fright and sickness at the sight that had been before them, her eyes large and blue against her tinged skin as Spock walked by him – if this whole massacre was to get at the Vulcan then Jim had no problems throwing the man out of the nearest airlock for Nero to take. Free of charge.

"Pardon me; I do not believe that you and I are acquainted." Spock spoke without emotion now more than ever and Charlie glanced to Jim, shaking her head very slightly as though telling him not to do anything else stupid for the day – his eyes were betraying his utter hatred for the Vulcan and if all of this, all of Nero's actions were a part of a witch hunt for Vulcan's, sacrificing his father, the god knows how many crew aboard the Enterprise, the rest of the Starfleet ships – then by god, the Vulcan wasn't worth it in the least.

"No we're not. Not yet. Spock, there's something I would like you to see," Nero's tone turned more businesslike, evil and seriousness dripping from his words as he became more formal, more conventional for a depraved killer, "Captain Pike, your transporter has been disabled. As you can see by the rest of your armada, you have no choice. You will man a shuttle, come aboard the Nerada for negotiations. That is all." The screen went back to the carnage that faced them as Nero cut the transmission and the entire bridge stayed silent, all eyes on an extremely bewildered Captain Pike who slowly rose from his seat.

"He'll kill you, you know that." Charlie was the first one to speak, feeling the need to state the obvious seeing as her captain looked as though he couldn't comprehend it at present time, shocked to hear her own voice and thankful when Spock agreed.

"Your survival is unlikely."

"Captain, we have nothing to gain by diplomacy – going over to that ship is a mistake!" It was Jim's turn now, his eyes darting between the Captain, Spock and Charlie, no one else daring to speak and for the first time in history, Spock backed him up too.

"I too agree, you should re-think your strategy."

"I understand that. I need officers who have been trained in advanced hand to hand combat."

"I have training Sir." Sulu raised his hand, swallowing hard and attempting to look confident, Captain Pike nodded at him.

"Come with me. Kirk, you too – you're not supposed to be here anyway. Houston, you have the bridge." He ordered and Charlie felt like she'd been slapped in the face – Jim was going? She had the bridge? She looked over at Jim who smiled at her like nothing was wrong, he could see nothing but fear and worry in her eyes and screw the situation, he was damn proud of her.

"Aye Captain." She tried to sound convincing but wanted to leap at Jim's feet as he, Sulu, Pike and Spock left the bridge. She took a deep breath and tried to remain calm, she was captaining the ship momentarily over everyone else aboard, Jim was about to do god knows what, Jim was _aboard_ in the first place and oh god... the Starfleet wreckage.

"Your orders, Keptin? Ma'am? Sorry..." The young Russian boy looked to her and blushed profusely, Charlie offered him a warm smile though a little shaky. He was an Ensign for Christs' sakes, he was above her in rank – he should have had the ship. All eyes were on her and she looked out to the wreckage for a moment, shaking her head.

"Stay as we are. Commander Spock will return in a few moments with Captain Pike's orders." She was about to say _final orders_ but that was a little melodramatic and it didn't need to be brought home that the chances were high that they would never see their Captain, their Helmsman or their renegade lifesaver ever again. The boy nodded and turned back to his console before the acting Captain gave the order that sent a wave of unbearable sadness throughout every being on the bridge:

"Lieutenant, scan the Starfleet wreckage for any survivors." There was a pause as a chill went through the air and Charlie saw a few tearstained cheeks which infuriated her slightly – they were all hurting, a Starfleet crew member in this situation had no time to mourn just yet.

"We can't beam anyone aboard anyway," Another Lieutenant told her rudely and Charlie fixed him with the same stare that she did with Admiral Archer when they argued in class.

"And if I know Captain Pike, he's sending Jim, Sulu and whoever else he rounded up to remedy that. We beam our crew aboard first when they succeed, then we beam the survivors aboard."

"It's going to take me some time to get the sensors back on line completely to scan the wreckage. Unless we get someone down here from engineering." Another voice told her and she shook her head silently, hoping that she sounded as confident as she felt.

"No, not yet. We sustained heavy damage; they need to get the ship back to rights first."

"There's four people in the Captain's shuttle. Captain Pike, Lieutenant Sulu, Engineer Olson and Cadet Kirk. Their shuttle is leaving the shuttle bay... now." Uhura's voice cut through the air and Charlie said a very quick prayer for the first time in her life, noticing a few other eyes flicker heavenwards too.

"Engineering to bridge!" Someone called to the Captain's chair and Charlie ran to it, hitting the red button as she sat down on its edge, the historical moment lost on her.

"Houston here."

"We've got hull breaches and the lot down here, Pike's taken our chief engineer and we're stuck for people!" The voice was panicked and Charlie tensed up more than she ever had in her life, eyes scanning the schematics for the ship. The breaches were bad, but not in anywhere that was needed urgently.

"Seal off Astrometrics and decks 4, 5 and 6 for now. We need to make sure that all engineering and medical are maintained. As of now Sir, we are a triage ship. Do what needs to be done."

"Will do, Nepers out." The changes were marked immediately onto the screen to her left as Commander Spock stepped back onto the bridge. He said nothing but nodded respectfully at Charlie, who also stayed silent but tapped her finger on the screen that showed that they were sealing of decks for the time being rather than repairing them – they had no time, no crew apparently and no back up. Spock saw and nodded again, this time hitting another button in the captain's chair.

"Doctor Puri, report." There was a pause before the com was answered and the voice that came over the line was like water in the desert to Charlie as she took her seat, letting Bones' voice, no matter how stressed it was, calm her destroyed nerves.

"It's McCoy. Doctor Puri was on deck six – he's dead." There was so much noise in the back ground, yelling, screaming, that it was no wonder he was stressed, his usual bluntness still there. Commander Spock paused for a moment, raising an eyebrow at the com panel before he responded, his reply measured.

"Then you have just inherited his responsibility as Chief Medical Officer."

"Yeah – tell me something I don't know!" Bones yelled back, cutting the transmission off straight away and Charlie smiled to herself – he was the head Doctor on board! It was definitely a coup but it hit her strongly and she sent another fervent pray, this one more urgently that he wouldn't meet the same fate as the previous Chief Medical Officer.

The entire bridge crew watched as the _Enterprise's _shuttle neared Nero's ship the Nerada, looking like a small white speck in comparison to the obscenely large Jellyfish-like Romulan destructor. The drill device that had been lowered into the Vulcan atmosphere looked like a giant chain with a platform roughly 2-3 metres wide about a quarter of the way down, apparently Jim, Sulu and Olson were going to space jump onto said platform to try and disengage it.

"The A- Team is entering the atmosphere... 20 000 metres," Chekov started a countdown as the three men entered the atmosphere and there was nothing that anyone could do except for watch and hope that nothing happened. As Chekov continued the countdown of how many metres they were into the atmosphere and how close to the platform they were, Kirk's voice cut into the bridge, with his countdown to pull his chute, then Sulu's, only Olson's remained. Both Jim and Sulu pulled theirs and all that could be heard was the two men yelling for Olson to pull his, the third man with the accent yelling back that he still had time, that he wanted to get closer. As Jim and Sulu's cries for him to pull got louder and the wind sound from Chief Engineer Olson's com got louder, there was a yell and his line went dead, Chekov's face turned white but his eyes never left his console.

"O-Olson is gone Sir!" There was a lot of yelling and grunting as Chekov and everyone else on board listened to the feed from their communicators, a very hazy and grainy image could be seen on the view screen but it was only of the atmosphere. A few seconds later Chekov glanced over his shoulder at Spock who looked mildly pissed, a large grin across the young boy's jaw.

"Kirk has landed Sir!" His excitement got him nothing so his eyes flicked slightly to Charlie who relaxed slightly, smiling back that Jim was safe, for now. They could hear what sounded like fighting and a Lieutenant who sat at the console next to Charlie leaned over, apprehension tightening his jaw.

"What kind of combat did Kirk have?"

"Bar fights." She replied with nothing but pride and refraining from correcting the Lieutenants 'past tense' phrasing.

"Engineer Olson would have had the equipment that Sulu and Kirk need, wouldn't he?" Someone asked and Spock simply nodded, his eyes trained on the view screen in front of him when the bridge went into slight chaos all at once: sensors and readings all came back online, information came through from other decks and although the feed was still coming through from Kirk and Sulu, engineering had obviously repaired the internal sensor array... or at least, part of it.

Everything coming back on line at once clearly overloaded a few internal arrays and a bulkhead on stage left of the bridge sparked and suddenly exploded, knocking Charlie, past tense Lieutenant and another Cadet out of their seats.

"Shit!" Past tense Lieutenant cried, scrambling straight to his console, muttering under his breath as he tried to retrieve data that could prove to be pivotal in their survival. Charlie sat and pulled herself up also, she'd landed funny but was fine. The third Cadet to hit the deck had smacked her head on a railing as she fell and was bleeding, Spock indicated Charlie with a flick of his eyes.

"Is the Cadet breathing, Cadet Houston?" He asked and she checked, the injured Cadet sitting up woozily. Blood was pooling and someone handed Charlie a tunic which she pressed to the back of the girl's head, seeing past tense Lieutenant now in only his undershirt, no coloured tunic over the top - it was the one in her hand.

"I'll take her to Medical bay with your permission, Commander. Captain." She amended with a glance over to Spock who nodded again, his eyes tense.

"Please remind any spare medical staff that one medical officer should be on the bridge at all times." She had no intention of doing so as she pulled the passed out Cadet to her feet, the girl lucid enough to attempt to stumble as Charlie pulled her into the turbo lift.

"Aye Sir." The doors slid closed and the Cadet slumped against the wall, muttering in her state.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

"It's okay. It's not your fault. Does anything hurt?" She wanted to keep the girl talking as well as herself, because truth be told it was starting to hit Charlie and she wouldn't let it... Heradee... Gaila.... Neil... her classmates, her friends...

"No... My stomach." The girl whimpered and Charlie took a step back, screwing her nose up.

"Are you going to be sick?"

"No..." She doubted that the Cadet could hear her properly – she was pale and clammy, cold to the touch.

"Don't worry. Doctor McCoy is going to take good care of you. He's the most talented man I know. Stay awake! We're almost at Medical Bay, I'll get Bones to look at you," She started talking gibberish, dragging the girl down the hall to Medical Bay where people were outside being treated by nurses but it didn't look like anything major, just people with cuts and bruises, broken bones that could be healed on the spot.

"Stay awake! I can't remember your name but you've hit your head... Stay awake!" Charlie insisted as a nurse saw them, helping drag the girl in.

"What happened?" She asked before they went into the bay, Charlie slapped the girls face lightly.

"A bulkhead exploded and she clipped a railing when we hit the deck. She mumbled something about her stomach hurting but that she wasn't going to be sick though."

"Could she have been subjected to a radiation or plasma leak?"

"No, the bridge didn't get... oh my god." Charlie mumbled she and the nurse dragged the girl to a vacant space in the Med Bay that looked like it had sustained a lot of damage – there were barely lights no matter how many agitated voices barked at the computer, hulls falling and something was on fire. People were crammed about the place and Charlie had to bite her lip from screaming in terror – there was blood and god knows what covering people there was something to be said for a hypo spray.

Never in her life had Charlie seen anything like it and never again did she want to.

The screaming and yelling was almost deafening and she turned to leave, stopping in her tracks to see all of Medical Bay lay out before her eyes – it was like something from a horror movie. Taking a deep breath and biting her lip to stop herself from adding to the horrific screams, she darted through the crowds, ducking out of the way of people who were running past her.

She clipped someone's arm hard and looked up to apologise in the chaos of it all, seeing a familiar pair of hazel eyes as the body that she'd hit, Bones' eyes meeting hers and she found herself stuck to the ground, unable to move, frozen by fear. He felt sick to his stomach that she was in Medical but a quick glance at her form told him that she was fine, restoring order to his world somewhat - it was getting harder for him to ignore the feeling in his stomach, the need to know that his friends were okay, if she was okay and there she was, looking scared but trying not to show it, her eyes wild and frantic but staying on his.

His eyes stayed on hers for what felt like minutes but it was only a second or two before there was a hysterical cry in the distance and a nurse ran past covered in blood of at least three different colours, Charlie saw and bit her lip harder, Bones knew that the hysterics were a call for him because his medical staff was dwindling by the moment and somehow he had landed the gig of running the Medical show.

She stepped past him and something sparked, caution was thrown to the wind and he grabbed her uniform, roughly pulling her body flush against his in a crushing kiss that was way too short and way too overdue, but oh-so necessary. It was his coming undone, he wanted Charlie more than anything he'd ever known and should anything happen to either of them, he needed her to know at least a part of what he felt. The kiss broke as soon as it started and although both wanted so much more, they were in the middle of a battle. He let go of her in a mixture of shock at his actions and joy – her lips were slightly swollen from his kiss and he didn't realise how much strength he had when he didn't dive on her then and there, trying to catch his breath and steady his own pulse.

"Don't die." Her voice was breathless and he managed small smile, hearing a nurse call for him in the background.

"Don't you die either." It wasn't anything at all that he wanted to say but duty called and as they ran in different directions both fought small smiles knowing that if nothing, absolutely nothing had gone right at all that day, at least one thing had gone in their favour.

She ran through the corridors back to the bridge, Charlie's mind spinning in a thousand different directions but she wouldn't let herself think about what she wanted – Bones had kissed her after three years of her wishing that he would. Now if they could make it out of this alive, she planned to kiss him again.

The bridge was just getting back to chaos after what Charlie prayed was a successful mission from Jim and Sulu, she took her seat just as her console started beeping and Uhura's voice cut through the air to her boyfriend who sat in the Captain's chair, as much of a troubled look behind his eyes that a Vulcan could get.

"The jamming signal's gone! Transporter abilities are re-established."

"Transport controls are reengaged Sir!" Chekov reiterated and Spock didn't flinch, didn't move whilst Charlie's mind was screaming for him to give the order to beam the two men back on board.

"Chekov run gravitational sensors – I want to know what they are doing to the planet."

"Aye Commander. Eh, Keptin sorry, _Keptin_." The young boy replied with a shake of his head at his confusion, Spock said nothing about the two crew members but something came onto Charlie's system, her voice shook when she called out.

"Captain, the Romulan vessel has launched something from their ship...it appears to be directing towards the planet's surface."

"Kirk to Enterprise! They've just launched something into the planet, into the hole they've just drilled... Do you copy Enterprise?" Jim's voice was an answer to Charlie's prayers, he sounded out of breath and the transmission was slightly distorted but by god, she had never been so glad to hear his voice. Never again would she complain if he knocked on her window at 3am or got into a bar fight – it was his version of combat training and bless him, it kept him alive. This time.

She tried to get a scan on the missile looking object that was falling through the atmosphere but the Enterprise scanners weren't working at full speed with the damage that they'd taken and as hard as she tried, with several calculations and slight modifications Charlie couldn't get a fix on the object, slamming her palms into the console.

"Damn it!" Hopefully one of the Science officers had done their job and gotten a fix on the chemical components of whatever the object was. Chekov turned in his seat and his eyes regarded both Spock and Charlie's much to her delight, his accent was thicker and he waved his hands wildly, looking between the two adults and his screen, tensing his fingers when he couldn't touch his console.

Long story short, the matter inside the missile was going to create a black hole in Vulcan, giving the entire planet only minutes to live. The few people that heard him exchanged glances as the rest of the bridge were busy running everything else, Charlie felt bile rise in her throat. _The entire planet_?

Spock stood and immediately began barking orders, his eyes staying on Charlie as he crossed the room straight for the turbo lift. His orders were to Uhura mainly to get in touch with Vulcan High Command but she stood and followed him to the Turbo Lift, demanding to know where he was going – Charlie knew and he looked over the other woman's head, his eyes meeting Cadet Houston's as he barked orders at the helm, his girlfriend and finally as the doors were about to close, Charlie.

"Cadet Houston, you have the conn." Uhura stared at the doors that closed in front of her eyes and Charlie stood – Starfleet training required any Captain in a hostage situation to remain in the Captain's chair at all times. Well, so far, in what she deduced was less than an hour, two Captains had upped and left and she guided a clearly shaken Uhura to her station.

"He's going to be fine. You need to alert Vulcan High Command so that Spock has nothing else to worry about. Focus on that." She murmured and her friend nodded as Kirk's voice blasted into the Captain's chair when she sat.

"Kirk to Enterprise! Beam us out of here!" The transmission had gone to the Transporter Bay and Charlie heard the calm voice of whoever was at the helm down there, telling the men to stand by, not move a muscle before there was another noise followed by Jim yelling for Sulu.

"Christ."

"Captain? Permission to talk in quiet." A Lieutenant asked and she stood, smoothing out her dress and intending to walk with him but he stepped in front of her, tall and imposing but leaned down to speak to her quietly.

"I've managed to get a couple of life signs aboard the Starfleet vessels but... there aren't very many at all and they're extremely weak." He told her ominously and whilst she appreciated his not wanting to spread that torturous news to everyone, it was hardly a surprise. The pieces of debris still floated in front of them, taunting them that anyone who believed that there was a high survival rate needed their head examined.

"Thank you Lieutenant." Was all she said, hearing the transporter bay was having trouble getting a lock onto Kirk and Sulu's location, hearing Jim yelling, hollering for them to be beamed up, Chekov jumped from his seat amidst the madness and turned to her ,eyes wide.

"I can get them! I can do zat!" He hollered and she nodded frantically, the boy already running, they could hear him hollering as he bolted out the door.

"Houston to Transporter Room."

"Transporter Bay here."

"Ensign Chekov is on his way to beam Kirk and Sulu aboard. Give him full access and do not get in his way. Is this clear?" Uhura heard the businesslike voice, the sharp tone and the clear, authorative bark and smiled slightly – Charlie was born to captain a ship like this.

"Yes Ma'am."

"Houston out."

"The black hole is expanding. We won't reach minimum safe distance if we don't leave immediately." A voice told her urgently from behind, Charlie was still listening to Jim's hollering as he and Sulu apparently fell without a parachute. Chekov hadn't made it to transporter bay yet and when he did, Kirk's hollering got more persistent as the two men free fell into the Vulcan atmosphere.

"Lieutenant! Send the coordinates of the life signs from the Starfleet wreckage to transporter bay – now! Helm, prepare to get us out of here on my mark!" She barked as around her, people called out, ran around and generally tried to keep the ship alive. The Lieutenant had sent through his scans of the life forms to her as well and she scanned them like lightning – twenty life forms from 8000 people. They'd be lucky to keep five alive and in her ear she could hear that Chekov had locked onto Jim and Sulu and was beaming them aboard.

"Houston to Doctor McCoy." Her stomach tied and this really wasn't the time to feel weird or grin like an idiot, his voice came over the com hurriedly.

"McCoy here."

"We've got maybe twenty from the Starfleet carnage beaming aboard – life signs are weak. Can someone be in the transporter bay now?"

"Damn it Charlie, I can't fit twenty more people in here! We're already using the hall as triage!" He barked and she looked over the ship diagnostic, her mind ticking like a time bomb.

"I can give you Cargo Bay One. Is that okay?"

"It'll do. McCoy out." He probably should have been nicer but he hadn't had time to be sweet and gentlemanly to her – why the hell she was captaining, he didn't know and wasn't sure he wanted to know, barking for three of his nurses to get to Transporter Bay One immediately. If he had three left.

"Houston to Chekov."

"Here Captain. I got them!" He sounded so pleased that he'd gotten Kirk and Sulu and she made a mental note to buy the kid a drink (of milk of course) when they got back to Earth.

"That's fantastic. We're sending through co-ordinates of life signs aboard the Starfleet ships; I need you to get what you can directly to cargo bay one as soon as you can. Okay?"

"Captain, we need to move!" Someone yelled and in her ear piece she could hear the transporter bay going crazy as she held up a hand and as soon as Chekov yelled that he had them, she focussed her attentions on Spock.

"Chekov, keep a lock on Spock, don't lose him!" She yelled and then Jim's voice came into her ear.

"Fuck Tex; am I glad to hear your voice."

"Are you and Sulu okay? We owe that Russian kid a huge glass of milk when we get home." She smiled, glad for a moment in the chaos. A few people heard and smiled, he laughed although it sounded like it hurt to.

"Fuck that – I'm shouting him his first beer."

"Captain, we need to get out!" It was the same Cadet who was insistent and it was annoying, Charlie had a few classes with her and she was always overcompensating the internal sensor array, was she overcompensating this?

"Lieutenant, how far away can we be and still be guaranteed a lock on Commander Spock and the Vulcan's?" She asked no one in particular and whoever had replaced Sulu at the helm turned.

"We've got only another 20 000 miles before we lose complete range."

"Get as close as we can, but ensure we keep in range. Chekov! We need Spock back – now!" She called and she could hear the boy and all of the chaos in the background, before there a sudden wave of silence wash over the transporter bay and Jims voice spoke quietly.

"Go."

"Go!" She barked and the ship took off, she turned the speaker off and put the ear piece into her ear, fearing the worst.

"What happened?" She asked nervously and again, Jim's voice was muted.

"We lost his mother. At his fingertips." Christ. That was heartbreaking and she gasped, cutting the communication and stepping over to Uhura who looked grey with worry.

"He's fine. We lost his mother though." She murmured to her friend who let out a sob, whether it was at the tragic loss or relief that Spock was okay neither knew. As the ship took off there was nothing that could be done, other than to watch the entire Vulcan planet, with its 5 billion inhabitants implode, sucking into itself within seconds before disappearing as though it never existed.

The entire bridge watched with horror and sickness, the normally loud and bustling room quiet and sombre. Charlie sat in the Captains chair, her knuckles white and feeling sick to her stomach but adamant that she wouldn't let it show.

"Jesus Christ." She heard a voice next to her and glanced to see Jim looking worse for wear but nonetheless alive. She jumped up and wrapped him into a furious hug, wiping her hands over his cheeks quickly to wipe away the dirt and make sure that he was still in one piece.

"Thank god. Oh Sulu, thank god." She did the same to the bewildered Lieutenant who hugged her back; she smiled reassuringly at Chekov as he took his seat back, looking a ghostly shade of white at the genocide inflicted before their eyes.

"You okay?" Jim asked her quietly and she nodded, feeling numb for the time being. Nothing had really hit her yet and she celebrated that because when it did, she would fall like a house of cards.

"I am. You two need to get to Medical Bay." She hated sending more down to Bones but Jim was clutching his hand and Sulu was bleeding quite profusely from the arm and they were needed if they were going to get Pike back.

"I'm fine."

"Jim, your hand's broken. I know a broken hand when I see one, okay? Go. Sulu, you too – you're dripping blood on the floor."

"You're a doctor?" Sulu asked, pointing to Jim's hand, Jim smiled and messed her hair though both pairs of blue eyes were haunted by what they had just witnessed.

"She's Starfleet Mafia. Gotten a few of these in her time," He joked quietly to lighten the mood; Charlie slapped his ass as he turned to leave.

"How about the two of you use your charm on the nurses instead?"

"Aye Captain." They replied in unison, leaving the bridge.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** :)_

_**Massive thanks and love y'all bunches to the following peeps:** Canna, FuzzehDeath, crystalclear8050, fafinette, SarahWeasley, Larxenethefirefly, Trekky18, mello-chic, Raxsah003, VikingShadow, Millenia-the-wings-of-valmar, Vulcanvamp, WinchesterWench, PinkTribeChick, RachyDoodle, Hidden Relevance, Jac Danvers and loquaciouslethality for being awesome and reviewing!_

_**Also to:** FuzzehDeath, Canna, WinchesterWench, mello-chic, loquaciouslethality, crystalclear8050, VikingShadow (Go the 'Huskers!), PinkTribeChick, DamienThornLover666, Trekky18, Hse Hissie and loquaciouslethality for their awesome PM's - I know that I joke about it, but I really do squee when one of your PMs drops into my inbox. Not so great when I'm in public, but... I can learn! :)_

_**Quick plug:** 'When Fates Collide' is a collab. between FuzzehDeath and I, the culmination of crazy, Wayne Brady, Elmo on cooking shows and basket surfing down a flight of stairs. Sound interesting? It is. And not as crackish as these AN's! _

_Next chapter should be up relatively soon. I'm hungry. OOH! I totally have vegetarian sushi left in the fridge!! SCORE!! Maybe not best at 4am though... yay! A reason to wake up tomorrow!! Please review to give me another reason to get up... :) Wow, that sounded way pathetic... yeah, I'm good with that. Please review!! :)_

Xx


	19. Electrical Storm

_**Surprise!** Two postings in one week! Usually I feel like that kid who skids into class late every morning, posting at the last minute. Yeah, I was that kid, I admit. _

_Not today! _

_I'm trying to get the "movie bits" hammered out quickly because lets be honest, we've all seen the movie. And, um, if you haven't - Hi, I'm CaffeineKid, this is planet Earth. Welcome.  
__This one's a little shorter, but you see a little more of Spock (not in that way kids) and a little more of Chekov (I think I just heard RachyDoodle squee!) and Sulu's characters. Hope you like it! _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek. And in other news, the Earth is round! I do own Charlie, a bunch of other useless twerps and the plot. Actually, that's a lie, I own a twisted version of a plot which is a twisted version of an original. Yeah! Roddenberry, Abrams, CaffeineKid. I likes it! _

_The chapter title is also a song by U2 and anyone who dares to tell me that the Edge is not the epitome of awesomeness will become a redshirt and die a horrible death in this story. Not really, but there will be some serious debate and a lot of mocking. Aside from the obvious, any white guy in his 50's (?) that wears a do-rag gets a cyber high five.  
Oh, and the song is 'Electrical Storm' (duh) so it fits in with the story, but it also kind of fits with Bones and Charlie. __  
_

_Enjoy my pretties, don't be so impatient Fuzzeh! :)_

* * *

Time passed and it felt like hours but truthfully, no one really knew. It was more than likely longer because there was still so much to do in the rest of the ship and no one wanted to focus on what had happened, what they were in the middle of.

Nero still had Captain Pike and there had been no word from the Nerada nor Pike himself, Captain Spock had taken some time and accompanied the Vulcan elders that he had managed to save as well as the few who had gotten to escape pods (which the Enterprise had beamed aboard immediately) to Medical Bay to check checked over along with Jim and Sulu. Charlie stayed in the chair and felt herself tensing up – she wanted a course of action, not this hanging here, waiting for a plan. It was ripping her apart.

"All senior officers report to the bridge immediately." The voice was their acting Captain's though it came from nowhere on the bridge, Charlie glanced around as Spock walked back on, she jumped up to attention.

"Thank you, Cadet. Please stay where you are, I require all senior staff present at such time." He told her as Bones and Jim walked onto the bridge, both looking exhausted and glaring at the Vulcan. Charlie's stomach knotted at seeing Bones again but this was serious, she had to focus on the task at hand. That was critical... no matter if her lips burned at the mere sight of him. It didn't matter. Much.

"Have you confirmed that Nero is heading for Earth?" Spock asked Uhura as he paced the bridge; Charlie leaned against the railing next to the Captain's chair as Jim fell into said seat like he was in his dorm room.

"Their trajectory suggests no other destination Captain."

"Thank you Lieutenant." The Vulcan replied and at his calling her Lieutenant, his voice was thick with implications and Bones, Jim and Charlie all exchanged a glance with their eyebrows raised.

"Earth may be his next stop but we have to assume that every Federation planet is a target." Jim pressed, his fists clenched and Captain Spock said nothing, simply raising his eyebrow at the other man.

"Out of the chair."

"Well if the Federation is a target, why didn't they destroy us?" Chekov asked; Charlie scanned the readings that had been loaded onto her console, her eyes swimming. There was nothing else, no one else close that could make such an impact - Uhura was right – the Nerada's ship trajectory suggested Earth.

"Why would they? Why waste the weapons? We obviously weren't a threat," Sulu argued, Spock was still pacing the bridge and held up a finger.

"That is not it. He said that he wanted me to see something - the destruction of my home planet."

"How the hell did they do that by the way? Where did the Romulans get that kind of weaponry?" Bones cut in, his voice gruff with exhaustion. After their various trips to the Medical bay, each of the people speaking could only imagine what he'd come up against in the past few hours.

"The engineering comprehension necessary to artificially create a black hole may suggest an answer. Such technology could theoretically be manipulated to create a tunnel through space time."

"Damn it man, I'm a Doctor not a physicist! Are you actually suggesting they're from the future?"

"If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains however improbable must be the truth." Spock replied and as his words twisted in Charlie's mind, Bones looked understandably pissed.

"How poetic." He grumbled.

"Then what would an angry, future Romulan want with Captain Pike?" Jim piped up, Charlie shrugged, her eyes on their Vulcan Captain.

"If the Nerada is on course with Earth, having a Starfleet Captain aboard opens a lot more doors – bargaining, weaponry, or maybe he wants Pike to watch Earth destroyed like he singled you out, Spock – um, Captain."

"As Captain, he does know details of Starfleet's defences." Sulu agreed, Jim started pacing like Spock was doing, his fists still clenched.

"What we need to do is catch up to that ship. Disable it, take it over and get Pike back."

"We are technologically outmatched in every way, a rescue attempt would be... illogical."

"Nero's ship would have to drop out of warp for us to overtake it." Chekov agreed with Captain Spock and Kirk had that look in his eyes that Charlie had seen countless times over the years and swallowed hard – this conversation wasn't going to end well. At all. Jim was focussed on a rescue mission and it was clear that Captain Spock wasn't – the two had already argued twice today, Charlie prepared for the third as the two talked over each other, Jim's voice getting louder and more fired up as they went.

"Why don't we assign engineering crews to try and boost our warp engine –"

"The remaining power and crews are being used to repair radiation leaks to the lower decks as well as repair -

"Okay! Alright, alright! There's got to be some way!"

"– subspace communication without which we cannot contact Starfleet. We must gather with Starfleet to balance the terms of the next engagement."

"There won't be a next engagement! By the time we've gathered it'll be too late! You say he's from the future, knows what's going to happen - then the logical thing is to be unpredictable!" Jim was trying desperately to keep his temper in check but his voice was rising as he got more infuriated with their Captain by the second, the Vulcan's jaw set in what could be construed in slight annoyance at the Cadet.

"You are assuming that Nero knows how events are predicted to unfold. The contrary, Nero's very presence has altered the flow of history beginning with the attack on the USS _Kelvin_ culminating on the events of today thereby creating an entire new chain of incidents that cannot be anticipated by either party."

"An alternate reality," Uhura breathed, Spock nodded once at her.

"Precisely. Whatever our lives might have been if the time line continuum was disrupted, our destinies have changed. Mr Sulu, plot a course for the Laurentian system, warp factor 3." Captain Spock ordered calmly, sinking into the Captain's chair as Jim glanced at the view screen at the front of the ship, shaking his head.

"Spock, don't do that! Running back to the rest of the fleet for a, a _confab_ is a massive waste of time!" He yelled, Charlie felt her gut twist and took a deep breath, preparing for the storm.

"Oh no." She murmured as again, Jim and Spock spoke over each other, their voices barking at each other louder than anyone ever thought possible with Bones jumping in, yelling for the two to shut up and act like Starfleet officers, yelling above them both to attempt peace.

"By following the orders left by Captain Pike when he left this ship."

"He also ordered us to go back and get him! Spock, you are Captain now! You have to – "

"I am aware of my responsibilities, Mr. Kirk."

"Every second we waste Nero's getting closer to his next target!"

"That is correct and why I am instructing you to accept –"

"I will not allow us to go backwards!" Jim yelled louder than anyone and everyone on the bridge stopped to look, years at the Academy knew that if this were as serious as it looked, either a fist fight or a court marshal would break out. Jim Kirk had been threatened with the latter already once in the day, by the same man, and as they argued, it was clear that this was going to be escalated to disastrous heights. After a moment, Spock stood.

"Security, escort him out." The acting Captain was furious and it was clearer to tell than anyone would have thought possible for a Vulcan, two large security guards enclosed on Jim and Charlie watched with an aghast sickness in her stomach as they dragged Jim from the bridge, his pale eyes still glaring at the pointy eared bastard who was intent on making his life hell that day. Three steps away from the turbo lift doors and Jim paused, Charlie tensed up knowing that stance from that man and seeing Bones do exactly the same thing.

"Jim, no!" He called as Jim took the two guards out, fighting with one of them as Spock crossed the deck and grabbed Jim's neck, making him fall unconscious immediately from the infamous Vulcan neck pinch.

"Get him off this ship." His voice was laden with repressed anger and as another two security guards struggled to pick Jim up from their mess of comrades, Charlie jumped to her feet, anger coercing through her veins.

"You can't throw him off the ship! Put him in the brig!"

"Send him to the nearest Starfleet outpost." The acting Captain was ignoring her which fired the girl up even more, anger burning her eyes and clouding her vision.

"You can't do that! Nero's ship will see the escape pod! Spock, _listen_!" She screamed, as loud as the men had been before the Vulcan rounded on her.

"Cadet, your opinion is not valid here."

"This is unor-" She started again but a deep grumbling voice cutting her off.

"Charlie!" Bones barked; his eyes were as dark as night and his tone something she rarely heard from him – it as telling her to shut up, not fight, Jim could sort his own mess out. She looked wounded as security dragged Jim off, her eyes large and sad until they focussed on Spock then they were the most furious grey that Bones had ever seen coming from her.

The two exchanged a glance and Bones' eyes softened somewhat – if she had argued with the pointy eared bastard then chances were she too would end up out the nearest airlock and there was no way that he could handle that. Jim had gotten himself into this situation and he could get himself out of it, Charlie was needed on board and by god, it would kill him if she was banished to god knows where in the middle of a fight. She seemed to understand his reasoning and apology in a look and her shoulders lost some of their tension, although her eyes maintained the furious storm, aimed solely at the acting Captain.

When they got back to Earth, _if_ they got back to Earth, there was going to be some extremely harsh words exchanged... off the record, of course.

She sat at her console with her back to the rest of the bridge, taking a few deep breaths so that she didn't lose her cool and end up tossed out of an airlock too, scanning where the pod containing Jim had been sent to – an ice planet named Delta Vega. Sulu and Chekov entered in the course to rendezvous with the rest of the Starfleet ships that were remaining and yet to engage Nero, they were filled with higher ranking officers who were posted in the neutral zone after some Klingon fire a few weeks back as well as their other missions. Bones had left after Jim's untimely departure but at the sound of his voice again, she glanced over her shoulder to see him glaring at Spock, back on the bridge.

"You wanted to see me?" He was frustrated to no end with this elf, no sooner had he left the bridge he was called back – he shouldn't have left Med Bay in the first place but again, the pointy eared bastard had insisted all senior staff. And damn him, he was senior staff now. Apparently. Not that the hundred plus lying injured in the infirmary cared, nor did the steady stream of people needing smaller wounds tended to in the Cargo Bay. At his greeting, the acting captain stood and paced the bridge, McCoy falling into step unwillingly.

"Yes Doctor. I am aware that James Kirk is a friend of yours - I recognise that supporting me as you did must have been difficult." Whoa, Bones hadn't supported the hobgoblin in any form, other than to tell Jim to shut up and make sure that Charlie didn't end up arse out of an airlock as well. His two best friends were pit bulls and he knew that. It had nothing to do with the blasted Vulcan, but he took it anyway.

"Is that a thank you?"

"I am simply acknowledging your difficulties." Spock stopped pacing when they were near Charlie's console, well within ear shot and Bones could see that she was still absolutely furious as the acting Captain, her shoulders squared and jaw set, eyes flashing like diamonds as she glared at her screen, pretending not to be listening but there was no way that she wasn't.

"Permission to speak freely, Sir." God, he hated calling that elf 'Sir', he hated it so badly. The word twisted on his tongue and although the Vulcan remained somewhat friendly, Bones wanted to knock him on his Vulcan ass.

"I welcome it." Gone was the Vulcan with the repressed anger in his voice and black eyes displaying the most hate anyone had seen from the race that hid their emotions and in front of him was a slightly accommodating, god forbid, friendly Captain. He hated him more than ever.

"Do you? Okay then. Are you out of your Vulcan mind? Are you making the logical choice sending Kirk away? Probably. But the right one? You know back home we've got a saying: if you're going to ride in the Kentucky derby, you don't leave your prized stallion in the stable." He hissed, intent on keeping his voice low so that the rest of the bridge didn't hear their conversation, clenching his fists when the Vulcan almost smiled.

"A curious metaphor Doctor, as a stallion must first be broken before it can reach its potential."

"My god man! You could at least act like it was a hard decision!" He snapped, aghast at the Vulcan's lack of feeling, compassion, of reason. How could anyone live like that? Be in charge of a Starfleet vessel?

"I intend to assist in the effort to re-establish communication with Starfleet. However if crew morale is better served my roaming the halls and weeping, I will gladly defer to your medical expertise. Excuse me." The smug bastard walked over as someone else was escorted onto the bridge; Bones clenched his fists a few times.

"Green blooded hobgoblin," He muttered, storming into the turbo lift back to Medical Bay and casting a tired eye over the place when he arrived back.

Doctor Puri was dead, now this was his responsibility. That was what happened when you went into war, people died. Some got injured, some died – it was a part of the rules of engagement. Hell, it was the basis of war wasn't it? It certainly had been with Nero and his band of merry followers, genocide for genocide, tit for tat, Nerada for Starfleet armada. Although the latter was unbalanced greatly, they still counted.

Bones sighed and looked over the med bay in all of its panicked glory - there were cries for help, yelps of pain and howls of anguish as the death toll rose rapidly and the injuries more than tripled, half of his nurses had gone missing and he understood without realising it that they too were more than likely dead... well, if they were alive but had somewhere else to be at present time he would kill them so yes, either way, they were dead.

A quick head count told him that he had three Nurses and one Cadet who was only a quarter of the way through his residency which was as helpful as a Nurse and one of those Nurses had gotten a piece of hull through her leg and was limping from patient to patient having bandaged her own leg up and given herself a pain killer hypo spray – he wasn't too sure how he felt about having an impaired nurse on duty but clearly the makeshift CMO didn't have a choice.

More time passed without any more arguments, fights, ships from the future holding their Captain hostage or anything else that had happened in the past day as the Enterprise hurtled towards the Laurentian system to engage the fleet. Charlie kept her eyes and her mind on her work because she was sure that if she spoke anything that was starting to seep into her mind she too would end up on Delta Vega and by god, there would be hell to pay when she got back to Earth. As it was, in the back of her mind she worried for Jim not just on the ice planet but for when they would be reunited on Earth – he would be after the acting Captains green blood like nothing else before.

Captain Spock re-entered the bridge and Charlie felt her spine stiffen, refusing to look at him – there was no reason to and she definitely was in no position to be throwing a tantrum, but Spock was in violation of Starfleet's code when it came to the treatment of prisoners let alone their own crew! Regardless of whether or not Jim was supposed to be on board wasn't the issue... well; clearly it was for one of them.

At one point Chekov was looking into space with a look that resembled pure horror and her heart felt for him – clearly a genius of epic proportions and only 17, seeing all that he'd seen today alone... the poor boy, not only watching six billion Vulcans disappear before his eyes but not being able to get a lock on Spock's Mom and then being privy to Jim and Spock's screaming match? What had happened to the simple mediation, possible evacuation mission?

Chekov glanced back at her with fearful blue eyes and smiled when she mouthed 'Are you okay?' to him, the boy nodding back before quirking his eyebrows as if to ask the same question. Charlie nodded and managed a smile back, she was working on autopilot and wasn't letting many of her thoughts hit her for fear of what she'd do, what she'd become. To lighten the mood she stuck her tongue out like a child and Chekov laughed quietly, doing the same back. It was a moment of infant lunacy in a room that had bared witness to way too much over the last day.

Sulu saw the exchange between the two and let out a snicker, shaking his head as he laughed. He was roughly the same age as she, Jim and Bones and seemed like a nice guy, he was someone that she knew would be a good friend for years to come. Should they make it out of their current situation of course, but with that trusting face at the helm, she was infinitely glad to Helmsman McKenna for getting long worm - though how on Earth did someone get long worm nowadays? She glanced back to see Chekov looking back at her with a silent thank you, smiling and turning back to her console.

Spock saw and heard everything but said nothing, it would appear that the young Ensign had become comfortable with the Cadet, there was an element of respect between the two that Captain Spock determined had become apparent during their attempts to get Helmsman Sulu and Cadet Kirk from the Romulan device and Spock himself back from Vulcan.

He had not yet thought much of crew morale on the bridge but that seemingly obvious exchange appeared to make other crew members smile, apparently at the humanity of their simple exchange. There were some things that Spock knew he would never understand about the human race and their meaningless exchanges were one of them. Although let it be known, it was clear that the female Cadet was tense, assumedly still from his altercation with Cadet Kirk. Doctor McCoy had acted as a mediator silencing the female Cadet and voicing his disapproval of Cadet Kirks' actions, however Spock assumed that this was more for their benefit in fear of punishment rather than rationality. He made a mental note to include such thoughts into his staffing report and focussed on the tasks at hand.

"Captain Spock, detecting unauthorised access to v...w..._water_ tube and control board." Chekov tried to pronounce his 'w's' without his accent and looked pleased with himself when he succeeded. All day alerts had been going off such as the one that Chekov had been alerted to – the Enterprise was still needing a few tweaks before going on its maiden voyage and seeing as there was no chief engineer anymore, it made system overrides and the like all the more difficult. No Cadet had the security clearance for a lot of repairs that needed to be made so were almost 'hot-wiring' the ship in places, breaking into access codes for what they needed. Alas, alerts had been popping up every few minutes it felt like.

"Bring up the video." Spock's tone was back to its Vulcan lifelessness as he conversed with his Father on the bridge, everyone watched as Chekov slid the security video to the view screen and were greeted with an image that stunned absolutely everyone in the room – Jim Kirk and some other man running through engineering.

"Security, seal the engineering deck. We have intruders in section three. Set phasers to stun." A grin wrapped itself over Charlie's face at the captain's morose voice and Jim's Houdini act to get back onto the ship; how the hell had he managed that? He'd somehow gotten aboard a ship that was at warp... and made a new friend in the process. A few minutes passed before the doors from the turbo lift opened and a security team wrangled the two intruders onto the bridge, the other man was shorter and drenched, looking around at the ship with wide, excited eyes whilst Jim was the picture of calm, dry and his face set into a stony mask.

"Who are you?" Spock crossed the bridge in a few quick strides as everyone turned to watch what was to be round... god, however many rounds Jim Kirk and Spock had gone that day, it was never ending. If they hadn't been in a life or death situation, there would have been a huge betting pool. His dark glare raked over the second man who looked up at the giant security guard who had him by the shoulder and to Jim, starting to answer Spock before Jim cut him off, his voice cold.

"He's with me."

"We are travelling at warp speed. How did you manage to beam aboard this ship?" Spock completely ignored Jim and kept his eyes on the other man who glanced back and forth, Jim cutting him off again.

"You're the genius, you figure it out."

"As acting Captain of this vessel, I order you to answer the question."

"Well I'm not telling, _acting Captain._ What, does... now that doesn't frustrate you, my lack of co-operation? That doesn't make you angry?" Yet again, Spock ignored Jim who it seemed was trying to rile the acting Captain up, turning to the other man as Uhura pressed her com quietly, sliding in her ear piece. Spock was her lover and Jim was her friend and if nothing else, the day had proved that neither man could stand the other. Security had been pointless before and the only voice of reasoning that had both men on side was McCoy.

"Uhura to McCoy."

"McCoy here. Everything okay?" He answered, there was something in her voice and she was whispering; his blood ran ice cold - what the hell could have gone awry now?

"Jim and a friend have somehow managed beam aboard - it looks as though he and Spock are going to have another altercation on the bridge. Are you free to get up here? After last time..." She trailed off and though neither knew, they both shook their head at Jim's insolence.

"I'll be right there." He cut the com link and pushed himself away from the readings that he was looking over- there was a list of people needing surgeries and now it was up to him to see who could wait until they got to a Starbase or the Starfleet Command. Quickly barking order to his staff he left for the bridge, the once busy halls now quiet and sombre as reality and the complexity of the situation that the _Enterprise_ had found itself in started to sink in. Mentally, he reminded himself that he had to organise grief counselling for the crew – if the shrinks in Command hadn't been in the wrecked fleet.

And how the hell had Jim gotten back on board anyway? Was he purposely trying to get the Vulcan to shoot him in the ass? If his friend graced the Med Bay with a phaser wound from the acting Captain, Bones wouldn't be the least bit surprised. He reached the bridge just in time to see Jim nose to nose with the oversized elf, his eyes malicious and his voice low, every pair of eyes on the bridge watching the two with bated breath. Something had to give this time, surely?

"– the need to avenge the death of the woman that gave birth to you." Kirk's voice was a ferocious hiss and Bones let out an internal groan – Jim was playing the dead mother card? That was beyond low, even for him. Especially seeing as he had visibly bristled when hours, possibly days now, ago Spock had played the dead father card on Jim when fronting for his academic suspension hearing.

"Back away from me." The Vulcan was barely audible; his voice betraying the emotion that was quickly bubbling under the surface although it was clear that was what Jim wanted.

"You feel nothing! It must not even compute for you! You _never _loved her!" Jim raised his voice and his final statement was the straw that broke the camel's back, Spock let out a roar and punched Jim squarely, before picking him up and throwing the man onto a console.

The two fought for a minute but it was clear that Vulcan strength and the emotional breakdown trumped the human man who had been beaten, bruised and bloodied already numerous times that day, landing only a few hits to the Vulcan's more furious, painful blows before grabbing the Cadet around the neck and squeezing, eyes as black as night. There were looks of horror exchanged amongst the rest of the crew but Starfleet training told them all to never get in the way of a pissed off Vulcan – strong and unemotional, their coming undone would more than likely kill a human with barely a breath. And Spock seemed to be proving that easily as Jim gasped for breath, a few of the consoles around the two broken from their fight, Jim's face red with exertion and turning purple from lack of blood flow.

"Spock!" The clear, crisp call came from the elder Vulcan, his own father who stood behind the fracas with a look that was edged with horror and understanding, his voice calm and controlled as his son let go, Jim coughing and gasping for breath. Spock looked haunted, his black eyes displaying more emotion than anyone had ever seen from a Vulcan and they knew that was the problem – he was broken, he was grieving and he'd snapped, almost killing a human in the process. If the other Vulcan's had seen his display they would consider him an animal.

"Doctor, I am no longer fit for duty. I am hereby relinquishing my command based on the fact that I have been emotionally compromised. Please note the time and date in the ships' log." There wasn't a heart on the bridge that didn't break for him, the guy had been a logical ass the entire time but Jim's barbs about his now extinct mother and planet were enough to push anyone to the edge. His eyes were full of sadness and sorrow and he looked shocked at himself, his father said nothing but followed his son off the bridge when the former acting Captain staggered off.

The entire bridge was silent with shock and surprise, there were so many questions that needed to be asked and answered yet no one could form the words, the man who Jim had brought aboard the first to break the eerie silence in a loud, booming, brash, Scottish accent.

"I like this ship! You know, it's exciting!" His words seemed to kick everyone into gear as most returned to their consoles, only a few remained, looking at each other and trying to figure what to do, where to go from there.

"Well congratulations Jim. We've got no captain and no goddamn first officer to replace him." Bones' growled to Jim who was still gasping for breath, it made Charlie smile that the Doctor didn't even bother to look over his friend.

"Yeah we do." The other man replied; staggering over and falling into the captain's chair, Charlie let out a sarcastic bark of laughter.

"You pushed a man to breaking point so that you could get the chair? Jesus, Jim that's low – even for you."

"What?" Bones glared at Jim who gripped the armrests of the seat as though he wasn't going anywhere, they'd have to rip the chair from the ground to get him off the bridge again.

"Pike made him first officer," Sulu replied, jerking his thumb in the direction of said guy, another look was exchanged across the bridge - this one of sheer horror.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Bones was the only one to react and Jim glanced up at him, still trying to control his breathing and ignoring the pain in his throat when he spoke.

"Thanks for the support." He retorted sarcastically and as Bones turned to leave, Uhura passed the (acting _acting_) captain on the way back to her con.

"I sure hope you know what you're doing, C_aptain._" She snapped, Jim's eyes were serious and troubled, as though the severity of the situation was just starting to hit him.

"So do I." He glared at the view screen for a few moments to determine his next cause of action and take stock of what was going on, Bones leaned down to Charlie, keeping his voice low.

"At least you can yell at him without being tossed out of an airlock. If he acts like a moron, fight him on it. He'll listen to you. Call me if he gets too out of control, okay?" He hated that being that close to her sent his system into a complete meltdown – they were in the middle of a war, people were dying and had died, his morgue was overstuffed to the point of ridiculousness but here he was, sending his damn hormones insane like he was a teenage boy all over again. Although he didn't miss the tremor that went through her body or the catch of her breath when he leaned down, making his lips twist into a slight smirk. Good to know that he wasn't the only one.

"I will. Thanks. Are you going to check him over?" She asked, blue eyes meeting hazel and he shook his head slightly, his eyes never leaving hers.

"He's breathing, he'll be fine. It'll bruise and it'll look worse than it is but it's his own damn fault." He straightened and squeezed her shoulder before leaving the bridge with a final glance to Jim who seemed to warring internally but that wasn't Bones' gig; he had a Medical Bay to deal with and if Jim was running the show now, chances were there would be more casualties and more injuries before the day was out.

"Attention crew of the _Enterprise_, this is James Kirk. Mr Spock has resigned commission and advanced me to acting Captain. I know you were all expecting to regroup with the fleet, but I'm ordering a pursuit course of the enemy ship to Earth - I want all departments at battle stations and ready in ten minutes. Either we're going down, or they are. Kirk out." The ship wide broadcast rang through the halls as McCoy made his way back to medical and he rolled his eyes – yup, there would definitely be more casualties and injuries by the end of the day.

"We should prepare for the worst, shouldn't we?" A nurse asked as he walked back inside, Bones glared at her.

"If 'the worst' you mean a full house again, then yes. Prepare for the worst. How's the cargo bay triage doing?" He asked, Nurse Chapel shook her head.

"We brought them back up here. The survivors of the wreckage needed more than triage. We can re-open, if you like." She added and he glanced around – there were fewer people in there now and he shook his head as another nurse handed him a patient's case workup.

"No, close it. I'd rather everyone, everything be in here. You heard the Captain, battle stations." He barked, reading over the workup with tired eyes. Crap. At this rate he was going to be in surgery until he was 70, even if they managed to get back to Starfleet. Not all of the surgeries were imminent so he left them on the back burner, there were cases, people, who needed help _now_ and the nurses, Chapel more than likely, had organised everyone into levels of care. Red needed first and foremost care, and then blue, then green for the mediocre lacerations and bruises, smaller fractures from the whiny kids who couldn't handle it themselves were left for the nurses to take care of. He dreaded to see how many more code blacks had landed in the morgue – he dreaded going through and identifying them all later even more so. Mentally, he added another thing to his to do list and looked once more over the infirmary, sighing tiredly.

It was going to be a long time before he slept again.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** I don't know about anyone else, but I surely would like to help Bones sleep...  
It amazed me in the movie that he was on the bridge so often. They'd been in battle, wasn't there people to make better? Not that i'm complaining, Karl Urban should be a fixture in every scene, but... I felt like I needed a reason for him to be there. Sorry if it came out weird. It was a last minute thing._

_I'm in a decent mood so maybe, just maybe, you might get another chapter at the end of the week. Maybe. No promises, but there's a definite possibility unless something goes haywire. :)_

_**Huge, epic thank you's to the bestest reviewers in the world:** Autobotsides (Welcome aboard!), Lacoste Skywalker, FuzzehDeath, loquaciouslethality, PinkTribeChick, MrsBonesMcCoy, Hidden Relevance, ayachan1412, Raxsah003, VikingShadow, Canna, loudmist, RachyDoodle, WinchesterWench, Larxenethefirefly, mello-chic, Steff7, Vulcanvamp and Yayyou._

_**Also to:** Autobotsides, MrsBonesMcCoy, FuzzehDeath, loquaciouslethality, VikingShadow, WinchesterWench and Steff7 for their awesome PM's - love y'all bunches!!_

_Plug time - 'When Fates Collide' was a total cliffhanger, literally! Seriously, FuzzehDeath went all out with the puns and... yeah. Once you're reviewed here, you should totally read it!!_ :)

Xx


	20. Be My Escape

_Hi!  
__Sorry this is a little later than it was meant to be, I've been slightly sick... stupid change in season! Anyhoo, I'm going to keep this short up here, see below for my slightly more normal AN's! __Insert disclaimer here and this is where I tell you that the chapter title is a song by Relient K and is awesome. _

_Happy chapter 20! Enjoy, unless Kanye storms onto the page halfway through. Does anyone else not like the Beyonce video that he was barking about?_

_Here we go... _

* * *

Charlie sat at her console, running over scans a hundred times until her eyes swam. She was getting even more agitated when there wasn't much that could be derived from the information that had been gathered on the Narada thus far - she hated it and she felt useless, glancing around the bridge and seeing Jim glaring violently into the view screen, his eyes flashing like Christmas lights. He felt her gaze and pushed himself to stand, jerking his head to the direction of Pike's office.

"Tex." She sighed and pushed herself up too, fatigue beginning to fray her nerves and ache her muscles, tension across her back and a burning in her eyes that she recognised as unshed tears. Jim walked into the undecorated office that Captain Pike was yet to use and sat on the edge of the desk, his body rigid. Charlie crossed the room and went straight for the replicator, cracking her back loudly as she adjusted her stance.

"Water. Ice cold." She ordered and took the glass, handing it to Jim who looked bewildered.

"Drink it. It'll make your throat better." She commanded and he did as he was told, wincing at the temperature but his eyes looked up to hers gratefully.

"Am I doing the right thing?" He asked finally and she sighed, resisting the urge to flop back on the couch that was there and sitting on the edge of the desk next to him.

"I can't tell you that, Captain."

"Tex. Please. Tell me – am I doing the right thing?" He begged, his voice sounding distraught and for the first time, she could see the fraying edges of his day starting to take their hold on the man.

"Jim, there is no right or wrong here. There's protocol and there's orders. You were ordered by Pike to go back and get him. Protocol states that we should rendezvous with the fleet. If we meet up with the fleet it might be too late – Earth and Pike could be dead, yet if we go to take out Nero's ship then we're grievously outmatched."

"Cut the bullshit - I know the facts. I want your personal opinion."

"I want to see Nero destroyed," She replied simply and he smiled, feeling his cheekbone in his right side ache. Yup, that was probably broken, "But, I want you to make sure that you're going into this with a clear head. You're looking at the greater good rather than just the man who killed your father." She added and he nodded again, drinking some more of the water.

"I am. Can we handle any more casualties?"

"I'm not sure. Engineering staff has been culled significantly but I'm sure that Mr. Scott can give you a better update, but the death toll thus far? That's Bones' department, not mine. I can tell you that you have no science lab and barely any science officers to analyse the scans that we have of the Narada and that your main science officer is also the man that you mutinied against so we're going into this relatively blindly." She told him, rubbing her palms over her face in a mixture of frustration and fatigue, he wanted to help her, make her better and make her the Tex with boundless energy. But after the day's events her eyes were allowed to have that hollowed look about them as they did. That hollowed look scared him more than anything – never had he seen her so fragile as she was next to him and he knew that she was restraining greatly against her inner emotion, that the hollowness was the part that had seeped through her veneer.

"Not entirely. Well, yeah, but... If I tell you something, I need you to promise that you'll keep it a complete secret. Like, take it to the grave." He licked his lips and rolled his eyes when she glared at him, pinching the bridge of her nose when it hurt her strained eyes.

"Take it to the grave? Re-phrase in current situation please!" She yelped, her voice cutting out halfway so she had some of his water. As Jim told her about his brush with Spock senior, future Spock or whatever he was supposed to be called her eyes widened and her brain almost melted, the idea so ridiculous that it made sense.

"Okay. So we've dealt with genocide, seen the Starfleet armada butchered, watched you get your ass kicked by a Vulcan numerous times, fought and are actively seeking out Romulans from the future and you got back onto a ship using a calculation that was invented in the future by a guy you just met and given back to him by the guy who marooned you on the planet in the first place, from the future?"

"You could say that the guy who marooned me on the planet saved me on said planet too. I know, I know – it's some kooky shit."

"Are you going to beam Spock senior aboard?"

"He said that Spock junior can't know about him."

"So you've left him stranded on an ice planet? What if you beamed him aboard and then confined him to quarters?"

"What if I beam him aboard and then we die? I've killed two versions of Spock in one short lived captaincy?" He asked, Charlie groaned and rubbed her temples.

"We're getting ahead of ourselves. Let's not think about it until after – for now, we need to come up with a way to get Pike back and... Defeat Nero."

"Right. Any ideas?"

"I don't think this is something that we can cook up in here, Jim. We don't know what we're looking at internally – you need to find out how we're doing for crew and engineering wise." She reminded him with the same tone that she did in the Academy, the same tone that hissed answers to him when he was called out in class and hadn't done the reading.

"Right. All senior officers, report to the bridge immediately." He pressed the panel on the wall and his voice floated over the entire ship, Charlie stood and rolled her shoulders, feeling her neck crack painfully.

"You should also get Bones to check you over. If you've fractured your cheekbone, you've probably also cracked a few ribs," She told him as she walked to the door, Jim smiled and winced.

"And you said that my bar fights were a waste of time – we both can tell a broken cheekbone and a broken rib at the drop of a hat."

"Now if only you could learn when a guy twice your size is going to kick your ass, we could teach a class. And Jim? I wouldn't tell anyone else about future Spock no matter how badly you need to – these people don't know you too well, the likelihood that they'll question your sanity after today is pretty high." She smiled, as the door slid open in release and they both stepped back onto the bridge at the same time that Bones and Mr. Scott walked onto the bridge, Bones was pulling a new blue Medical tunic over his black undershirt.

"What now Jim?" He asked as Mr. Scott dried his hair off with a towel, having changed into a red shirt to signify his engineering detail. Jim crossed the bridge and walked over to a spare console before looking back to Charlie who was looking over the star charts that they would be flying into a few moments.

"Can you pull up the scans of the Narada?" He asked and she did as she was told, Sulu leaned over and glanced at the screen.

"Their shields are infinitely stronger than ours."

"Can we strengthen ours at all Scotty?" Jim asked the new engineer who paused for a moment, flicking through a PADD.

"Possibly. I've yet to see the damage but... there's no way we'll get our shields to rival theirs. We don't have that kind of technology." His accent was so thick that between him and Chekov, Charlie wished that she'd taken Xenolinguistics; although Uhura could speak all three Romulan dialects she couldn't speak Russian.

"How are we going for crew, Bones?" Jim asked his voice quiet and Bones wiped a hand over his face, ignoring every set of ears that tuned into their conversation from all over the bridge at such a question.

"Not great. Death toll so far from the Enterprise is looking around 150. I'll be able to get a better idea when I get duty rosters through and a look into the morgue**." **He replied and every person who heard his words felt a chill shoot down their spine. 150 people from the same ship that they were standing on now? It was incomprehensible.

"Shit. Do we have enough crew to cover all positions?" Jim asked; Sulu was the only one who spoke.

"We seem to be managing okay for now." Everyone thought it, but no one said it – the main crewmember that they were lacking was a Captain who hadn't been kidnapped, thrown off the ship or violently attacking another. Jim realised after seeing the look that his senior officers shared, rubbing his jaw and looking at the scans of the ten mile long Narada. Pike could be anywhere.

"Whatever the case, we need to get aboard Nero's ship undetected."

"We can't just go in there guns blazing Jim." Bones replied tiredly, folding his arms over his chest and Charlie could see the fatigue wearing into his features. They were all feeling it, but her two boys had seen the worst of it today, that was for sure.

"If we're going to assume that the Narada is based off the Romulan design that we know now, just with years of technology adding onto it, we can assume that this entire area here is their bridge." She pointed to a large area on the scans, Sulu raised his eyebrows.

"That entire area? That's almost as big as our entire ship."

"Romulans carry a different skeletal crew to us – their bridge is the main base for everything. In saying that, I'm only going by what we know now, of what would be more primitive Romulan vessels." She sighed, frowning at the scans in front of her. Bones looked her over quickly, aching to get his hands on the cut above her eye but held back when his Medical eye told him that it was minor and his body told him that if he touched her now, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from doing anything else.

"But the math doesn't support this kind of – " Sulu started as Chekov ran over to where the small crew of sudden senior officers stood, skidding to a stop and gasping for breath in flustered panic. The young boy looked prideful of the fact that he had figured it out – he knew how to get aboard Nero's ship undetected.

"Keptin Kirk! Keptin Kirk!"

"What Chekov?" Kirk's brow furrowed as he spoke, his entire workings coming out in one breath and the Captain had to strain to understand him, he was talking so fast.

"Based on the Narada's course from Woolcan, I have projected that Nero with travel past Saturn. And like you said, we need to stay invisible to Nero or he'll destroy us. If Mr. Scott can get us to warp factor 4 and if we drop out of warp behind one of Saturn's moons, say... Titan, the magnetic distortion from the planets rings will make us invisible from Nero's sensors! From there as long as the drill is not actuated, we can beam aboard the enemy ship."

"Aye, that might work!" Scotty boomed, nodding as he considered the thought and tossing his towel aside.

"Hang on a minute kid, how old are you?" Bones demanded irritably, Chekov looked pleased that he was being addressed.

"17, Sir."

"Oh good, he's 17." The Doctor murmured sarcastically, glaring at Kirk that the kid partly driving the ship and calling the shots here was a wide eyed infant who could barely speak English. Charlie glared at Bones, feeling the ghost of his lips without thinking, her eyes locking onto his earnestly, now professionally.

"But I'm not 17," Her stomach had clenched involuntarily at the force behind his eyes, bringing up a list of questions and thoughts that she still wouldn't allow herself to think for now. It took considerable strength from the both of them to push those thoughts aside, "I'm looking over the calculations Jim – he's deduced the same answer that I would have. And the using the magnetism from Titan's rings is genius."

"It's a big risk. A big if." Kirk replied, his face serious as he contemplated the idea. He trusted Charlie's mind explicitly, he trusted her more than he trusted most on the ship at the moment, hell, aside from Bones, she was his next best support and friend.

"Seems a little 'hide and seek' for me." Bones grumbled, Uhura nodded in agreement and Charlie glared at the both of them, wanting to equal parts slap Bones upside the head and tear his clothes off. Well, maybe not equal part, but close enough.

"Doctor. Mr. Chekov is correct – I can confirm his telemetry. If Mr. Sulu is able to manoeuvre us into position, I can beam aboard Nero's ship, steal back the black hole device and if possible, bring back Captain Pike." Spock arrived on and crossed the bridge to the small group up the front. He looked back to his usual self, there were no traces of the broken acting Captain any more, hell, there was even a small, Vulcan like smile from the man. However he had pulled himself together, it was admirable.

"I won't allow you to do that, Mr. Spock." Jim's voice was even as he stood toe-to-toe with the other man and for the first time that anyone had seen them in a room together, there was no malice.

"Romulans and Vulcans share a common ancestry. Our cultural similarities will make it easier for me to access the ship's computer to locate the device," He spoke with the slightest of smiles, "Also; my mother was human which makes Earth the only home I have left." He added after a brief pause, ignoring the slightly stunned looks on the crew's faces that he was in fact, half human.

"I'm coming with you." Jim told him bravely and Charlie rolled her eyes – was there any chance that Jim wouldn't go? All it took were the words 'potential danger' and the kid would sign up to anything. Of course Jim Kirk was going.

"I would cite regulation but I know you will simply ignore it."

"See? We are getting to know each other." Jim smiled; the hatred between the two gone and as he walked past the Vulcan he clapped him on the shoulder, Spock paused – it didn't take a genius to know that Vulcan's did not like to be touched. He grimaced but let it slide, his mother had often spoken of 'olive branches' and their metaphor within human society and he assumed that James Kirk had just offered him one.

Charlie yawned and walked back over to her console now more determined than ever to find a weakness within the Narada. God forbid, if Jim was going to be beaming onto that ship she wanted some knowledge of a flaw in its' make up – even if she could find out that Nero was allergic to peanuts, _something_, no matter how small would give them something to go by. Anything.

She saw Mr Scott and Bones leave the bridge again and sighed for what felt like the fiftieth time that mission – Bones was another set of worries and fears that she couldn't think about. Considering that the chief medical officer that was originally selected for the Enterprise thus this mission had died within the first hour of the journey she didn't want Bones to suffer the same fate. God forbid, if she lost both of her boys in one hit she wasn't sure what she'd do.

Jim and Spock spoke quietly for a few minutes as everyone returned to their duties, there had been another shift change and although someone had mentioned to her that food would sharpen her mind, the chances of Charlotte Houston leaving the bridge when Jim Kirk was about to board the same Romulan vessel that had destroyed what would be estimated at a good 90% of the Cadet class were non - existent. The same Cadet who had told her that she should eat something was the same Cadet who had looked quite offended when she had snapped something at him, what, she couldn't remember but her arsenal of insults ran deep and she took pride in that.

"Tex, come with me. Mr. Sulu, you have your orders and the conn until she comes back." Jim suddenly called, standing by the doors of the turbo lift with Spock, Charlie nodded and pushed her chair back, Sulu glanced over his shoulder.

"Aye Captain."

The three stepped into the turbo lift silently and as the doors were about to shut, a hand reached in and caught the doors, Uhura stepped into the lift, her eyes like stone. Jim started to say something to her but Charlie caught his hand, shaking her head slightly – it was clear that she wanted to see her boyfriend off and no matter how reprehensible it was to leave the bridge during red alert, it had been a long day for everyone none more than Spock. The turbo lift ride was deadly silent and Charlie's stomach felt like it had been scooped out when it hit her that this was, potentially, the last time that she would ever see Jim Kirk alive. Her hands crushed into fists and she bit her tongue as not to say anything, the four waling into the transporter bay and whilst Spock stepped up onto the pad immediately, Uhura with him, Jim stopped by Mr. Scott.

"How are we Scotty?" His voice was serious; more so than ever.

"Unbelievably Sir, the ship is in position."

"Sulu's good." Charlie remarked in an attempt to stray Jim from what she knew was coming.

"I need you to make sure that –" He finally said to her, she cut him off with a shake of her head.

"Don't. I know my orders, anything else is irrelevant."

"If we don't –"

"Stop it Jim! I want you to stay in a continual com link with me, okay? Then we can keep track of you and Spock."

"I will. Now will you listen to me?" He asked with a very slight smile, his eyes baby blue pools of seriousness and it was that look that would be burned into her brain, horrifying her for years to come. This wasn't Jim Kirk, sly fox and man whore at large, this was James T. Kirk, acting Captain of the USS _Enterprise_, risking his life to save another's.

"Not if you're going to say anything within the ballpark of what I think you're going to say." God, her eyes were hurting. The mix of keeping them open, focussing and not shedding the tears that pricked at their sockets was almost excruciating. She knew what was coming, she knew this man better than she knew herself and damn it, she wasn't strong enough to hear those words tumble from his lips. Not Jim's, not ever.

"I need to."

"No you don't. Get on the transport pad." She pointed, her eyes avoiding his now and he grabbed her by the shoulders, forcing her to look up at him.

"Shut up for two seconds. Whatever happens, if you think you have the tactical advantage you fire on that ship even if we're still on board. That's an order." She knew that. She wasn't stupid, the entire destruction of Earth or Jim and Spock and the rest of the Enterprise crew? It would never be in question. But hearing it from him, hearing his words made the tears that she so desperately didn't want to fall well in her eyes, she nodded and ignored them.

"Yes Captain."

"Otherwise we'll contact the Enterprise when we're ready to be beamed back. And if I – "

"Jim, _please_. You'll be fine. Everything will be okay." She was telling it to herself as much as him and he smiled, brushing his thumb over her cheek. Tex, the only girl and one of the very few people who knew the real him. Tears spilled down her cheeks and her eyes gained some resolve, she pushed them away angrily with the back of her hand.

"Are you armed?"

"No, I thought I'd go over there unarmed. You know, attempt peace?" He told her sarcastically and she shoved him hard in the chest, smiling at his humour in the worst situation possible. However, the image of her telling that story at his funeral flashed across her eyes and her tears tumbled faster, she dove into his arms, satisfied when her head hit his shoulder and her eyes, pressed tightly against the fabric of his uniform stopped their watering.

"I love you and please, _please _be careful." She finally said, looking up at him and he smiled that same grin that he had worn many times over the years.

"I always am."

"I'm serious. Pike might not be in any condition to come back here, but you will be. Think shit through, okay?"

"I love you too." He replied with a smile, kissing her hair and squeezing her tightly once more before pulling away before he got emotional and seeing Uhura with Spock on the transporter pad, the two kissing. Of all of the things that he'd seen in the past however many hours, that was one of the most shocking, his jaw dropped and he glanced back to Charlie who looked up at him ruefully – she knew?! Knew and didn't tell him?! He had to survive now just so that he could tease Spock and Uhura endlessly about whatever the hell they were.

"I will be back." Spock told Uhura quietly, she leaned forward to press another kiss to his lips, their arms wrapped tightly around each other.

"You better be," She sighed, pain evident in her voice, "I'll be monitoring your frequency."

"Thank you, Nyota." His voice was still quiet and with one more final kiss, Uhura stepped back from the transporter grid and stood next to Charlie, gripping her friends' hand in an attempt to calm herself. Neither of the girls were overly emotional people but before them stood one of the few people in the world to each of them that could destroy any calm and resolve that they had.

"So her first name's Nyota?" Jim asked Spock, three years of trying to figure out her first name and this was how he got it? There was too much crazy to comprehend.

"I have no comment on the matter." The Vulcan replied quickly and Scotty, who was sitting behind the transporter, glanced from Uhura to Spock quickly, clearing his throat as his eyes turned hard and his voice serious.

"Okie dokie then. If there's any commonsense in the design of the enemy ship, I should be putting you somewhere in the Cargo Bay – shouldn't be a soul in sight."

"Energise." Acting Captain Kirk ordered seriously and as the swirling lights encircled him, his eyes met Charlie's and she could see how nervous the invincible man really was. Next to her, Uhura bowed her head and coughed back a sob, Scotty looked to the two girls that wore identical haunted expressions and felt his heart break – that Jim Kirk kid was a good lad and the Vulcan Spock didn't seem that bad, now that he had pulled himself together from nearly killing the first guy.

God, he needed a sandwich. Being in this situation on an empty stomach was not a good idea.

Charlie took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, her eyes still fixed on where Jim had stood for a brief moment before she turned to her friend was trying not to fall apart.

_Without Gaila, without Heradee... Spock on that ship... _

"Hey - I need you cool, calm and collected. If we're going to get through this and get those boys back, we need clear heads. Okay?" Charlie grabbed Uhura's upper arms tightly to jar her back into her own mind, the usually collected girl nodded, steely resolve settling behind her eyes.

"Okay. I'm back."

"Good. I need you to keep an open comm link for my ears only; I don't want the rest of the crew hearing if something goes awry. Continually check for other transmissions too – we can't have the Klingons or god knows whoever else deciding that we're ripe for the picking at the moment, blaming us for their 47 ship loss the other day. Is this clear?"

"Yes." Both girls sized each other up for a moment, deciding that they were the best people for their jobs at current time, probably at all. They'd been friends for years and they'd bonded over everything from boys to classes but tonight, it was that bond that they trusted each other with to get them through this.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** Bye Jim and Spock! Godspeed! :) This is proof that the boys go off and do their macho bit, the girls are there holding down the fort. :)  
There's a poll up on my profile page to see who everyone's favourite "background character" was/is. If you're feeling kind, would you mind skipping over and having a vote? Thanks lovelies! _

_**HUGE thanks to:** Canna, FuzzehDeath, loquaciouslethality, WinchesterWench, Jac Danvers, Hidden Relevance, crystalclear8050, Vulcanvamp, Yayyou, RachyDoodle, Raxsah003, Larxenethefirefly, PinkTribeChick, Duskborn, MrsBonesMcCoy, Lacoste Skywalker for reviewing!! I love reviews. Really, I do. :) _

_Thanks also to the ghost readers out there - I hope you're liking everything so far! _

_**Also massive thanks to:** Canna, FuzzehDeath, loquaciouslethality and WinchesterWench for their PM's - thank you oodles and oodles for keep me (in)sane and letting me flesh ideas out!!_

_Don't forget to hit the poll! Reviewers get cyber hugs! :)_

_Xx_


	21. We've Gotta Get Out of This Place

_Hi! Here's the next installment - all of my random dribblings and such are at the base of the page. :)_

_**Disclaimer:** Things that are true: I don't own Star Trek, Simon Baker looked to yummy for words at the Emmy's (my country did something right, at least!) and I own Charlie.  
The chapter title is by a group called 'The Angels' and yes, I am aware that its an Animals cover but really, the cover is a bajillion times better. Plus, they're local for me thus will be heralded as such! Give it a listen if you like good, old fashioned rock. _

_Enjoy, my pretties!_

* * *

Uhura and Charlie ran through the corridors of the _Enterprise_ from the transporter bay to the bridge, bewildered crew who were wandering the halls staring aghast at the two panic stricken Cadets tearing past.

"Move!"

"They have activated the drill." Chekov called to the two women when they ran back onto the bridge, Uhura signalled one of the other Communications crew with a wave of her hand.

"Communications and transport are inoperative. Sulu, please tell me you have them. Otherwise we won't be able to beam them back." She stated and Charlie sank into the Captain's chair, worry pulsating throughout her. Jim was alone, she couldn't help him. Never _ever_ did she want to give the command to fire with him still aboard. To execute her friends? She felt her stomach heave at the thought.

"Kirk and Spock are on their own now." Sulu had a pinched look on his face, eyebrows furrowed and he swore under his breath, slamming a palm into his console. Charlie stared out of the view screen grimly, glaring at the haze of orange dust that was hiding them and their warp signature from Nero and the Narada's sensors. After a moment she felt her skin crawling and glanced to the rest of the bridge to see more than a few eyes on her, looking to her for guidance. Taking a deep breath and setting her features into something that wasn't a glare or worry, she licked her lips and lifted her chin.

"We had to expect that this was going to happen. For now, we need to trust that Captain Kirk and Commander Spock are going to do what they set out for." Her voice was tight, reassuring and authorative but she felt anything but - she was just a little girl. An adult, yes, a Starfleet Cadet, yes, but equipped to deal with this? Hell no! Sure, she acted like she had balls of steel but that was only because she could run and hide behind Bones and Jim should anyone call her on it.

"Can we get a visual of Earth? Find out where the drill has gone in?" She didn't know why she was asking, it didn't matter, but there were still eyes watching her and it was unnerving. She felt like she had to look busy.

Earth came up on the view screen, a closer image than they could see behind the Narada and for a moment, the Narada's ghastly image was gone from in front of the bridge crews' eyes and everyone visibly relaxed. A snort could be heard from one of the crew and Charlie glanced over to see an Ensign looking over his console.

"The drill has been launched into San Francisco bay. Roughly 200 metres from the shoreline, roughly 100 metres from the bridge." He reported, Uhura glanced to Charlie.

"The Academy. Is that why they wanted Captain Pike?" She asked, Charlie resisted the tired urge to snap or roll her eyes – how the hell was she supposed to know?

"Not sure. If they're intending to create a black hole on Earth, then it really doesn't matter where the drill is situated." She murmured. God, her eyes were killing her.

"At least in the water it hasn't hit any civilians." Sulu offered and she threw him a thankful smile, glad for his voice of calm reason amongst the freakish stares that she was getting.

***

Bones was in surgery, using all of his concentration to repair the damaged artery of yet another guy from engineering – the amount of redshirts that crossed his path in Medical was astounding – and not think about Jim being aboard the Romulan ship, or Charlie in charge of the whole shebang at the moment. Though he'd rather think about any of the above than their more than likely impending doom.

"Doctor? We're running extremely low on saline." A voice said next to him and a nurse whose name he couldn't remember stood at his elbow, eyes blinking quizzically at him from behind the surgical mask that she held in place.

"How low?" It mightn't matter to be honest but he couldn't think that way, let alone voice it. Especially when this mystery nurse had puffy, red eyes – clearly she'd been crying at some point recently.

"Severely low." She replied in a flat voice and he glanced to Christine Chapel who stood in the doorway with another query, she nodded with a mask held over her jaw also.

"I'll see what I can rummage up. Also, Ensign Reiot just went into cardiac arrest again – he's back now but we're also running low on adrenaline. I can't even replicate the synthetic stuff - we don't have Command clearance." She told him calmly and he swore under his breath, leaning back in the small surgical room and hitting the comm. button with his elbow.

"McCoy to Houston."

"Charlie here." She sounded distracted and distant, no wonder why.

"Did Jim or Spock set you command clearance in the Enterprise system?" He asked, knowing without realising that she was more than likely staring at the comm. space with her head cocked to the side, the way she did whenever she was questioning something.

"I'm unsure. I have access to everything that I've needed so far. Can I ask why?"

"We're low on supplies and command codes are the only ones who can replicate drugs. I need you to give it a shot or we're screwed." He was demanding and that was what she needed – someone to bark at her, to not stare at her like she held their fate in her hands. Though there was no way that she was leaving the bridge, Bones was cooked if he thought that right now.

"You can use my code. It's 96837210. Let me know if it works, if not, I'll try to get a hold of another or get someone from engineering to hot wire it." She sounded distracted and he paused for a moment, it sounded like 'hot wiring' had been done quite a lot over the last day.

"Did you get that, Chapel?" He asked the nurse who nodded, already disappearing towards one of the replicators, "Okay. McCoy out." He sighed and turned back to the guy open across his table, his eyes flicking to the monitors to make sure that everything else was normal. He closed up the damage artery straight away and sent one of the nurses to deal with the rest, storming from the small surgical bay to the larger Medical bay that was still down on lighting, blackened and charred parts from the fire and still full to the brim with casualties.

Chapel caught his eye and shook her head and idea struck him, crossing the infirmary quickly to what had been Dr. Puri's office, the doors had come slightly apart in the small explosion that had happened and he pulled them apart enough to squeeze through, trying the CMO's replicator – it had to be programmed for such exploits, right?

Apparently not. He cursed loudly and kicked the cabinet, ignoring the blunt pain that encased his foot and cursing again for the hell of it – he had clearance at the Academy, why was this different? Oh, right – because he actually needed it now.

"No luck?" Nurse Chapel asked and he shook his head, pointing to Puri's computer.

"Can we access any records from here? Get Puri's code at least? Or Pike's? Hell, even that hobgoblin's would be useful! How badly do we need supplies?" He asked tiredly and the nurse met his eye evenly, blue and unwavering.

"Reiot has been crashing on the hour – adrenaline is the only thing working for him at the moment until he can get on the table. We've had a couple of crew go into shock induced cardiac arrest, and we're down to the last palette of saline. And, most importantly, we're starting to run low on morphine. Not as badly as the others, but if we're going into battle again, we'll be in trouble." She replied and he nodded, processing everything. Basically, they were screwed.

"Okay. Surgical rooms 3 and 4 are still unusable from the fire and 2 is being used as a makeshift morgue. Bring Ensign... whatever, the guy with the artery in here for recovery if there are no beds out there and prep Reiot for surgery."

"Yes Doctor."

"Either get someone to break into the crew files to get a command code or get a brain from engineering up here to try and hotwire the thing. Failing that, try the bridge again – " He barked, already walking back out in the infirmary with Chapel keeping pace at his side, being interrupted but by a voice that he knew well.

"Houston to Doctor McCoy."

"Here Charlie." He pressed the button on the wall tiredly, glancing at the six Vulcans that sat in the corner, still being fixed up for their injuries, wondering if they had been given temporary quarters yet.

"How did you go with the command codes?"

"Not good. We're trying to access command crew files at the moment but I doubt we have clearance for those - looks like we're hotwiring."

"Okay. Let me know how you go. Houston out." She hit the button on the chair at the same moment that a small ship that looked like a glowing white fish emerged from the Narada – it was the ship that carried the red matter, the ship that future Spock or other timeline Spock (her temples pounded at that) had created.

"Captain! There's a ship emerging from the Narada!"

"Small, looks to be... I don't know what kind of technology it is." An Ensign called, sounding confused and Charlie stood, as though getting to her aching feet would give her a better view.

"I do. It's Spock. Keep watch of the ship – we protect it at all costs, understood?"

"Aye Captain." Sulu replied, his hands moving over his console though he didn't look at it, she sank back into the chair in reply, "Spock's ship is entering Earth's atmosphere."

"Nero's ship is firing! Target missed." Chekov cried, sounding breathless with relief at the latter part of his statement and Uhura felt her hands shake, trying futilely to tap back into Spock's frequency.

"The ship is... _has_ shot out the drill!" Sulu called and on cue, the bridge sprang to life – alerts went off, people started calling reports Charlie breathed a sigh of relief though it was small – Earth was saved, tick that one of her list, now she just had to worry about Jim, Spock and oh yeah, the rest of the _Enterprise_. Not to mention – who knew how many of those drill things Nero was packing?

"Scotty! Have you got a lock on Jim and Spock?" She called into the comm.; she heard an 'aye' and the start of another sentence in a heavy accent before another heavy accent cut him off, this time Russian.

"The Narada is firing again, Captain! The other ship has gone to warp!" The small ship with the intense light at the back disappeared into the stars right before their eyes and Chekov glanced back at her; Charlie kept her eyes on the screen and held up her hand.

"Wait. If we go now without the Narada moving, we expose ourselves. Hold steady, Mr. Sulu but prepare for – go! Pursuit course!" She barked, cutting off her own sentence as the Narada took off, bursting into warp also, she felt tightness in her chest – this was it. The final showdown.

She was going to die.

"All decks – red alert! Battle stations!" She commanded cogently into the speaker, hearing her voice bark over the entire ship, its force impacted further by the 'red alert' alarm that sounded somewhat more croaky than it should have been – obviously another casualty of the voyage.

A fervent pray to someone she wasn't sure she believed in as the _Enterprise_ dropped out of warp, she gripped the arms of the Captain's chair, the historical moment of being the first female to captain the _Enterprise_ lost for a later moment to be filed away in her mind for later scrutiny with everything else that had happened since she'd stepped on board.

"Fire! Fire!" She barked; surprised at the force and anger from her voice and the relief that washed over her when the first torpedo hit the Narada. Seeing it rattle and shake a ship of that size faltering at her hand was empowering, she wanted to destroy them but held back, partly wanting Spock or Jim to deal the final blow – it was personal for them. Sure, it was for her too, but she hadn't lost a parent at Nero's hand. Her fight for that was elsewhere.

Spock's small ship stopped and faced off against the Narada and for a second all three ships stared each other down. It was as though the Narada didn't know what to do, Spock was sizing up his opponent and the _Enterprise_ was there to run interference.

Then everything happened at once.

The Narada fired missiles at Spock's ship at the same time that the small ship plunged into a collision course and every person on the _Enterprise_ bridge gasped, their shoulders tensing – this was it. What was more than likely their final moments of life.

"Hold steady," She commanded for something to say and to break the silence, "Still got a lock, Scotty?"

"Say the word and they're back here, lassie." His voice was calm and sweet, Jim's rough voice cutting through the air.

"Enterprise, now!"

"Houston to Medical! Someone needs to get to Transporter Bay one – now!" She yelled, seeing Spock's smaller ship firing into the Narada as it rammed head first into the long tentacles of the Romulan ship, disappearing completely but pieces of broken Narada dropped into darkness and there was a small explosion – had Scotty gotten Jim and Spock in time?

Charlie's throat closed over and her command came out strangled, her voice low and but could be heard over the entire bridge.

"Fire." A single shot was to seal their fate and as a black hole opened and started to pull the Narada into it, the turbo lift doors opened. Sulu's hand relaxed over the weapons fire panel and Charlie felt waves of relief douse the flames that had been eating at her skin as Jim and Spock crossed the room to stand in front of the view screen.

"Keptin! The enemy ship is down; their shields are down, Sir." Chekov called happily, the crew sharing small smiles that once again, Jim Kirk had pulled a rabbit out of some orifice and managed to get onboard the _Enterprise_ against all odds.

"Hail them now." He drawled, the two imposing figures walking shoulder to shoulder, eyes dark. Charlie and Uhura snuck a glance at each other with hidden smiles of victory.

"Aye." Chekov sounded vengeful, focussed now though happiness and relief were evident across his boyish features. In front of them, the Narada was being pulled slowly into the black hole that Spock and his ship had created; Nero's face appeared on the grainy screen.

"This is Captain James T. Kirk of the USS _Enterprise_. Your ship has been compromised. You're too close to the singularity to survive without assistance, which we are willing to provide." Jim rattled off confidently, proving that he had been awake in at least some of his classes and Spock turned so that his back was to the view screen, still shoulder to shoulder with Jim who turned also, his posture relaxing slightly.

"Captain, what are you doing?"

"Showing them compassion may be the only way to earn peace with Romulus. Its logic Spock - I thought you'd like that." Jim replied and Spock paused before a quirk of a real, human smile played on his lips.

"No, not really. Not this time."

"I would rather suffer the end of Romulus a thousand times! I would rather die in agony than accept assistance from you!" Nero roared, the transmission getting grainer and more muffled as the Narada neared implosion like the 5 billion Vulcan's earlier.

"You got it." And there was the Jim Kirk that Charlie knew. Cocksure, always had the winning hand, a way out – he was even smiling that charming grin. "Arm phasers, fire everything we've got!"

"Yes Sir." Sulu was smirking and already hitting the phasers before Jim had finished speaking.

Charlie scrambled out of the Captain's chair as Jim walked back over, seeing the ghost of terror written on her face – he'd heard through the comm. that she'd actually given the command. He'd had his ass kicked more times in one day than he could count, but giving the command to fire must have hurt her just as much.

"You're okay?" She asked as he dropped an arm across her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple, feeling her fingers grab his chin and her eyes checked him over. A few new bruises, another couple of cuts, laboured breathing – nothing that he didn't deal with every Sunday morning.

"I'm okay." He replied, the entire bridge crew watching the Narada explode and then implode into the black hole. Bits of debris broke off but were sucked into the gaping vortex and suddenly another alarm went off and the sign 'Warning – Gravitational Pull' appeared across the view screen.

As the Narada disappeared into the black hole completely, Captain Kirk's voice rang across the bridge, his words like water in a desert:

"Sulu, let's go home!" Resisting a remark about Jim now trying to bed his helmsman, Charlie walked back to her console and allowed the smallest of smiles to cross her face - the relief at what had just happened, what they had just seen and avoided was like an ache in her bones.

"Yes Sir!" The _Enterprise_ was suffering awful turbulence, sensors all blinking and wailing overtime, the jarring and shaking of the ship making it hard for everyone to stay in their seats and the pull of going into warp that they had learned to expect didn't come.

"Why aren't we at warp?" Jim barked after a moment, Chekov's hands flew over the con so fast that his fingers were a blur.

"Ve are Sir!"

"Kirk to engineering – get us out of here Scotty!" He tried and there was an echo over the com of a panicked Scottish accent, '_You bet your arse Captain!' _before Scotty's voice came over the bridge, loud and clear, "Captain, we're caught in a gravity well – it's got us!"

"Go to maximum warp – push it!"

"I'm giving it all she's got Captain!" Loudly, cracks and tears appear through the walls and rip up the side of the bridge and across the ceiling. The noise was deafening and worried looks replaced the relieved ones, a communal gulp could be heard across the bridge.

"All she's got isn't good enough! What else you got?!" Jim yelled over the ripping and cracking sound of metal, the ship still shaking and jarring violently. Scotty stuttered for a moment, before yelling down the comm., over the panic and work at either end of the line.

"If we eject the core and detonate, the blast _could_ be enough to push us away! I canne promise anything though!" At his words, a huge crack travels across the view screen and a gasp can be heard – after everything that they'd been through, being sucked out into space to their deaths was not high on anyone's 'to do' list but looked likely unless they high tailed it away from the black hole that was sucking them in.

"Do it, do it, DO IT!"

Suddenly, a blinding light erupted and then the rumble of an explosion could be felt before the ship shook more violently than before. The feeling of being pushed forward created a small bubble of hope in the air and then there was a sudden jolt and another rumble so loud that nearly all of the bridge crew clamped their palms over their ears and attempted to duck the pieces of cracked, broken and falling debris that was once the hull of their ship all before a second explosion and a moment of perfectly smooth sailing before they were clear and home free.

The relief in the air was palpable and there were sighs of relief, cheers of delight, some more quiet tears shed and now the daunting task of returning to Starfleet and explaining the whole ordeal.

Charlie tried to catch the breath that she didn't know she'd been holding, exchanging liberated looks with Uhura, Spock, Sulu and Chekov before finally looking to Jim with a wide smile that felt foreign to her. Jim and Spock exchanged a glance to which Spock nodded respectfully at his Captain, the other man laughing slightly as the vestiges of adrenaline ebbed through his veins.

* * *

_**Author's Notes: **They're alive! Who would have thought?  
Righty- o. I'm having a shithouse week already and the only way that I see to remedy this is to hide from the world until the week is over. So my darlings, another chapter soonish (like tomorrow or the next day) is more than likely! I hope that's cause for a 'wahoo'! See, this is where I'd bribe you for reviews, but I'm not going to do that. At least here, anyway. ;)_

_**HUGE thankies for reviewing to:** Loquaciouslethality, Canna, WinchesterWench, Vulcanvamp, Yayyou, Hidden Relevance, RachyDoodle, crystalclear8050, Larxenethefirefly, (welcome aboard!), Jac Danvers, Duskborn, FuzzehDeath, mello-chic, and Raxsah003!!  
**Also, we have some newbies with us now, so everyone say 'hi' and 'welcome aboard' to: **Skatinggirl2011, Lakeside and You've Got Gold! I bow down to you guys for reading my drivel in one hit!! I hope you like it now Nero's carked it... :) (I'm sorry that rhymes, but I really didn't mean for it to, promise!!) _

_**And the bestest PM-ers ever, who keep me laughing insanely:** loquaciouslethality, WinchesterWench, FuzzehDeath, crystalclear8050, VikingShadow, Vulcanvamp and Skatinggirl2011.  
**Vulcanvamp:** I haven't forgotten my gift to you, it's coming - I promise!! Thank you so much again for your uber kind words. :)_

_And now for the begging and pleading, me generally looking pathetic time: The poll of who your favourite background character was/is is still on my profile if you haven't voted! Please do, if not only to see the bigger version of my pretty icon. :) After you review, of course!! _

_Xx_


	22. Long Ride Home

_Hi!  
__Straight to the legal stuff, see below for AN's! :)_

_**Disclaimer:** Not mine. Charlie is though, as are the faceless minons. The title of the chapter is by Patty Griffin and the song in italics at either end of the chapter is from 'This is Home' by Switchfoot. If you've seen The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian you may have heard it. Ben Barnes... yum... *goes off into Homer Simpson-esque drool*  
__Sorry, I'm back now. _

_Anyhoo, enjoy!! :)_

* * *

_I've got my memories  
Always inside of me  
But I can't go back  
Back to how it was  
I believe you now  
I've come too far  
No I can't go back  
Back to how it was_

Created for a place I've never known

Captain Pike was only half conscious and as he was placed across a bio bed, Bones hated that he had to stop checking the man over for a moment.

"Captain, this is Doctor McCoy. I need to ask for your command codes to access the replicator here." All of his training told him that asking was a bad idea but this was triage – you do what needed to be done. Pike's eyes took on a slight lucidity and horror washed over them before he jerked around, trying to sit up. It took McCoy and another nurse a moment to get the man calm again, before Bones tried again, Pike spoke first, his voice gruff and veiled with pain and frustration.

"Tell me what the hell is going on."

"The Enterprise is fine; we're on our way back to Earth. Nero and the Narada have been defeated. You're safe here –"

"I know I'm safe, it's my goddamn ship! You're the punk that smuggled Kirk aboard – where's Puri?" Doctor McCoy was not known for his patience or his bedside manner and as the Captain glared at him, the young Doctor glared right back.

"Dr. Puri is dead. Spock made me CMO and whoever equipped this ship missed a few key components of a pharmacy – back up codes should the command codes of the CMO be compromised and a fun little drug called morphine. We need command codes so that we can save the people out there, _your_ crew, or at least make them comfortable!" He barked, opening the door to the rest of the infirmary and stepping aside so that Pike could see the damage, the man lay back.

"583-5298-q058094."

"Thank you. Nurse Chapel!" He called, handing over the codes and seeing the visible relief that crossed her features – a sign that they were worse off than she let on.

"I'm sorry. But –" McCoy walked back over to Pike with only some remorse about his outburst, the other man held up his palm, albeit shakily before letting it drop.

"You're a good Doctor, at least."

"Don't say that until you're back at your post. Sir," Bones amended with a wry smile, loading up a hypo spray, "I'll see you on the other side Captain – now let me do my job." The other man was out cold before Bones had even finished speaking.

***

The mood on the bridge had slipped from its exuberant relief to wrought sadness again and this time it was centred on the Starfleet armada that they, the bridge crew, had seen floating aimlessly in front of their very eyes some time ago. Everyone had their own demons to battle on this one, their own friends to worry about and grieve over, their own way of dealing and as Jim glanced over his crew, he realised that the scars were going to run deep for all of them.

Spock had requested leave to meditate with the remaining Vulcans as a way of exorcising their grief and Jim knew that he needed to get in contact with Starfleet to let them know what the hell was going on but... he needed to get his head around it first. Bones was more than likely tied up with Captain Pike and Jim knew better than to disturb either of them, Charlie was still at her console but as he glanced over to her, she rose, keeping her back to him and left the bridge silently. They didn't have crew to cover each other but at the moment didn't need any – they were on their way home, if anyone decided to attack them now there was nothing they, or anyone else, could do.

She was going to be sick. Silence had fallen over the bridge as realisation of the events unfolded and if she didn't get out from under Jim's watchful eyes for only a moment... Charlie excused herself quietly and forced herself not to run like she wanted to, walking calmly off the bridge and straight into the turbo lift, determined to hold it together.

Her resolve didn't last long, the turbo lift opened on the random floor that she'd pushed and her purposeful stride started, slowed and then she bent down, head in her hands and started to cry as the names, the faces of her now dead friends danced menacingly in front of her eyes – Gaila, Heradee, Neil, Rodney, Ted... hell, even those that she didn't like didn't deserve to be turned into space junk the way they had been.

She had never cried in front of her friends and had never intended to but when a pair of strong arms wrapped around her tightly and said nothing, she felt like she had failed. She was weak.

They were dead. She was never going to see them again and it hurt so badly, a deep aching pain that pierced everything in her body. The mystery person's warmth was comforting and they said nothing, just held her as she cried, not moving except for her shaking shoulders. After a minute her sobs subsided and she dragged her palms over her eyes, glancing up, unsure of who she was going to see – she didn't have the strength to see Bones without falling into his arms and seeing Jim would send her into another round of tears she was sure – surprised but glad when a pair of large blue eyes and a mop of angelic curls peered into her eyes curiously.

"Do you vant my sleeve?" Chekov asked innocently, offering it to her which made her laugh through her tears, reaching and giving him a tight hug.

"I'm good, thanks." She replied, taking a deep breath and standing, watching as he did too.

"Ve have seen a lot today." Was all he said, his voice thick with a wise understanding that she would never have thought the young genius would be capable of.

"Yeah. How are you holding up?"

"I am... numb. Focussing hard on my duties, there will be time to grieve back on Earth." He stared at the floor, his eyes hard and Charlie had to wonder who he had lost in the fight – his jaw was set, his eyes steely and suddenly he looked older than his proclaimed 17 years. She reached out and dropped an arm around his shoulders, enjoying the warmth and comfort as he did the same, the two walking back into the turbo lift before she spoke.

"You did really great out there. Here." She amended, wiping her eyes with her sleeve in an attempt to hide the evidence that she knew Jim would see.

"As did you." Chekov replied with a small smile, gesturing for her to go first as they walked back onto the bridge. Jim looked up and felt his heart rip – clearly Charlie had been crying, this was something he couldn't fix though, someone whose ass he couldn't kick. She avoided his eyes so he decided against saying anything, falling back into his seat.

***

"Doctor – you need to see this." One of the Nurses told McCoy as he re-set the broken bones of a Lieutenant, watching on the monitor as each knitted itself back together before his eyes. Sure, they would still be severely weak and the Lieutenant would be barred from any form of physical exertion for the next week, but for now, it would be one less person clogging up his Bay.

"I'll be right there. Chapel! Can you finish this off for me and then administer 30mg of Lisopropyltine?" He instructed and the woman who had become his right arm over the last... however long appeared at his side, taking the regenerator from him.

"Yes Sir." She seemed confident and though regeneration was usually left to the Doctors not Nurses, he decided to let it slide. She was competent and he had done most of the harder bones first.

"What?"

"Captain Pike's scans are showing something that he has apparently ingested." The other Nurse told him, handing over the results and he bit back a hundred smart-alec remarks about the quality of Mess Hall food, his smirk dying quickly on his lips – whatever the hell it was that was inside Pike, it was alive.

"Christ." They practically ran into the exam room that Pike was stationed in, the other Nurse who was assisting in the preliminary scans standing back, not touching or doing a thing.

"We ceased tests immediately in case we caused the parasite to react."

"Nurse – get one of the Science team down here to figure out what the hell this thing is." He ordered and the woman nodded, already striding towards the comm. system as he took another look at the parasite through the scanner. He really didn't want to start trying to remove it until Science had a better idea of what they were dealing with – it looked like a bug - what if it was toxic? Poking and prodding it could be more disastrous.

He'd seen some stupid things by being on call at the Academy – idiots who thought they'd try some phaser training, a dumbass who seemed to get himself into a bar fight every damn weekend, the same dumbass who had contracted a strain of poison ivy by falling out of a bedroom window when his conquests' husband had came home early. There was some accidents that couldn't be helped, the trauma that sometimes needed to be taken care of when a fleet ship docked, but Captain Pike...

This was bad.

***

Jim sat in the chair, digging up the courage to do what needed to be done. He needed to get in contact with Starfleet but firstly, he had to see with his own eyes how the _Enterprise_ had fared. Never would he admit it, but James T. Kirk had faced his fathers' murderer, watched an entire planet die, seen the ships that his friends were on floating lifelessly, dealt with a thousand other things on this voyage but seeing the disaster and carnage on his own ship was not something that he was strong enough for.

After a moment of pulling himself together and finding his resolve, he rose from his seat, chewing in his lip. "Tex, you have the bridge."

"'Kay." She replied, pulling herself up and over to the chair that Jim had just vacated as he limped across the large floor space.

"You just want the bridge for yourself, don't you?" He teased and she nodded, falling back into the chair.

"Hell yes. Why not? It's the best seat in the house and the last time that I sat here was a barrel of laughs!" There was a snicker at her sarcasm and Jim threw her a smile that looked worried, eyes scanning her over and resting on the cut on her forehead.

"You need to go to Medical Bay." Yeah, because the last time she'd gone in there, things hadn't been made complicated at _all_.

"You're a fine one to talk. Replicate some ice and put it on whatever needs it, okay?" He was battered and bruised, had broken his hand when he and Sulu space jumped onto the drill at Vulcan and re-broken it when he and Spock had stormed Nero's ship. There were definitely some broken ribs, a broken cheek bone and a searing pain in his hip and down the side of his thigh - yes, he needed to go to Medical Bay but being tied in up in there for how long was out of the question. When they landed, he'd go.

Engineering was a blackened and charred haze of what looked like twisted metal, barbecued by a blind man with an open flame. There were parts scattered everywhere and Cadets running from place to place like they were still on red alert, none of them noticed the acting Captain walking through. Not that any of them would care.

In the distance, he could hear a booming Scottish accent like a beacon for where Jim needed to be and dodged two of his classmates carrying a piece of what was once a piece of hull, now not even salvageable.

"Scotty!" He called, seeing the now familiar face barking orders to a crew that he, like Jim, hadn't been assigned to but he, also like Jim, had suddenly found himself in a huge position of power. The shorter man glanced over to Jim with a slight nod as he finished barking orders to three of his crew before turning to the other man, looking him up and down and taking a large bite from the sandwich that was in his hand.

"You look like you've been used as a human battering ram."

"You'd be surprised," Jim replied with a short laugh which jarred his ribs even more – what, did Bones have informants all over the place? He'd get to Medical when he was good and ready, "How's everything down here?"

"Totally banjaxed, of course. What are they teachin' the lot of ye at the Academy now? The wirin' here looks like it was done by a five year old!" He crowed, reaching down and shifting a metal grate which was twisted beyond belief and taking another bite from his sandwich.

"Are we going to be okay getting home?"

"Well, it's not ideal and I don't like not having a warp core, but... We'll be okay." The Engineer's voice was a lot more serious now, his eyes darting about as though he wished he could be everywhere at once. People still scurried around them like ants before a storm, clearly Scotty needed to be in the fold as he barked across one of the large areas to another couple of people Jim recognised from a few of his classes, he patted the Scotsman and undeniable lifesaver on the arm.

"Let me know if there's anything you need."

"Another bloody sandwich and a stiff drink."

"I know what you mean," Jim echoed as he left, reaching up painfully to rub the back of his neck. He'd seen the damage in Engineering with his own eyes and the haunted stares of the crew all over the ship as he passed, he wasn't game to go into Medical but knew that would be just as bad, if not worse than, Engineering.

"Kirk to Doctor McCoy." He hailed from Pike's office – hails and transmissions from Starfleet were backing up, it was time to answer them and after another two tries, a pleasant female voice came over the comm.

"I'm afraid that Doctor McCoy in surgery at the moment, Sir. I can get him to contact you as soon as he's finished." There was a no-nonsense tone to her voice but Jim needed _something_ to tell Starfleet, looking at the comm. unit as if he could see the nurse. She sounded hot.

At least his.... brain was working. Albeit painfully, but still working.

"Can you let him know that it's urgent?"

"Wait one moment – I'll see if he's free." She replied curtly and a moment later there was a clicking sound and Bones' irritable voice.

"What Jim? I'm busy."

"How's Pike?"

"He'd be better if you weren't interrupting me while I'm trying to cut him open."

"You're operating on Pike?" Jim knew very little of Bones' skill as a surgeon, sure, professors praised him and he sounded like he knew what he was doing but all Jim had witnesses first hand was his friends' ability to patch Jim himself up after a bar fight or whatever else. This was entirely different... but he trusted the man – he wasn't the type to open a guy up for the hell of it... was he?

"No, I'm joking. Because I have the time to do that Jim, just like you clearly have the time to ask inane questions. Give me some suction and maintain the Cloxymeryl." He demanded to whoever else was in the surgical room, Jim paused for a moment before asking what he really wanted to know.

"Is he going to be okay?"

"I'm not sure. It's touch and go," There was nothing but tired honesty in the Doctors' voice as both men sighed, "How is everyone up there?"

"She's starting to crack. Not that she'll show it, of course. So, surface wise, we're all fine." Jim wasn't an idiot, medically, he cared about the well being of the crew but personally, Leonard McCoy cared about the well being of Charlotte Houston.

"We're a goddamned star ship crewed by kids." The man muttered, Jim didn't know what to say to that – on one hand, he felt like a child, on the other, he felt like he'd aged 30 years over the past... well, from the kid who was on Academic suspension to the man who sat in the Captains' chair. It could have been a week that had passed, a day or an hour, he had no idea.

"Yeah. Let me know if you need anything. Kirk out." He sighed once more and shifted uncomfortably in the office chair that Pike was yet to use before hitting another button, "Uhura? Can you get me a link to Starfleet please?" He requested and a few moments later her professional though clipped tone replied.

"Aye Captain. Standby."

"Thank you... _Nyota_." He could practically feel her spine straighten; hear her sharp intake of breath. No one but Spock called her that and no one, especially Jim Kirk, ever would.

"Careful Kirk; wouldn't want to make it through all of this to be phaser blasted by a disgruntled Communications Officer," Her tone maintained its professionalism and there was a slight teasing to her tone, though serious, "Patching Starfleet command through to you now."

***

It was a Romulan parasite and the toxin that it released had been likened to a truth serum. And every time McCoy touched it, the little scorpion looking bastard wrapped itself tighter around Captain Pike's spinal cord. The toxin had spread into the Captain's blood stream so he was on dialysis in an attempt to purify his blood again which wouldn't mean much if they couldn't get the damn bug out in the first place.

Leonard McCoy rarely panicked, but he could feel himself start to freak out. There was no one else to help him, no one else with the level of medical knowledge that he needed and no one that he could vent to at the moment.

"Doctor, his blood pressure is plummeting."

"His fever is spiking."

"He's not responding to the Restalplatin." With each hurdle, McCoy dealt out solutions without realising, anything at the moment to keep Captain Pike alive and not to provoke the bug until they knew what they were dealing with.

"Sir? Our database is limited when it comes to Romulan hemipterous insects, but from what I can tell, we're looking at a variation of an Earth-like scorpion." A voice told them over the comm. and even two of the nurses rolled their eyes.

"I could have told you that ten fucking hours ago! Tell me how the hell to neutralise it!" He roared, smashing his fist onto the small console to end the call and letting out a stream of highly undignified words under his breath, "We're either going to have to try something or close Captain Pike up – I don't like leaving him exposed like this." He muttered, the Captain's spine exposed and the scorpion clearly visible, still producing the poison that ran in the man's blood system.

After another few hours of trying everything that he could think of and yelling at the imbeciles in Science some more, he managed to neutralise the spinal cord in the area that the scorpion (to all intents and purposes, it was a damned scorpion) had latched onto, using a paralytic neurotoxin that had to be altered after being mixed with the dialysis and other drugs keeping Pike alive caused a reaction.

Now, his main problem was trying to get the bug out of his Captain's body, make sure that the poison didn't circulate even more, keep his vitals up as well as tend to the other patients that needed urgent care also.

However, they had to wait - Pike's vitals needed to climb before Bones could start the tedious process of repairing the man's central nervous system and the damage to his spinal cord.

Chapel caught him as he left the OR and for the first time she looked slightly frazzled, pushing her braid over her shoulder.

"Acting Captain Kirk has tried three more times to get a hold of you – something about reports?" She pulled a face and handed him another patient's results, pointing over to a man that lay on a bio bed, "Ensign Mackenzie had a reaction to the morphine, so I adjusted her dosage, but I think she may have a minor allergy to it. Lieutenant Malakoff has been discharged to her quarters pending surgery on her hand when we get back to Starfleet and Cadet Limón went into cardiac arrest again but is now stable." She noted as he looked over the results, marking down a few adjustments to dosages and the like that needed to be carried out, nodding and handing the PADD back.

"What now Jim?" McCoy asked as he sat at Doctor Puri's unused desk, looking over more results for the various people littering the infirmary. At this rate, he was going to be in surgery for the next year.

"I've been in communication with Starfleet, they've said that they're prepping the Academy Medical for when we return. Is there anything that you're going to need?" Jim's voice was serious and as Bones looked over the results, he sighed.

"A bigger morgue," There was silence on the other end of the comm. – was that a bad joke? – before McCoy continued, "I'm serious. Unfortunately."

"Can you send me through a rough report of what you'll need, how many we've lost and are injured at first glance and anything else you think is of importance. They'll also want an update on Pike."

"I'll do what I can. McCoy out." He cut his friend off before he could say anything else, dump anymore work on him – paperwork now? Starfleet wanted reports already? They weren't home free just yet, it was slightly premature in his opinion.

"What the hell would I know? I'm just a Cadet," He muttered to himself, looking up a couple of patients' files' and calling out to Chapel before returning to the mess that was the infirmary.

***

"Sir, we're approaching Space dock." Charlie's voice cut into Pike's office clearly sounding tired and jarring Jim from a sleepy haze, his head resting on his arm over the desk.

"What?"

"Get up, Jim. We're nearly home." There was a slight teasing in her voice and he stood, rubbing a hand over his face and stretching his arms up which proved to be a bad idea when he felt a searing pain through his body. He'd get to Medical when he wasn't so busy (his last five minutes of sleep didn't count) and when Bones didn't have a thousand other people to look over.

Walking back onto the bridge he smiled when he saw Charlie flopped into the Captain's chair, she was sitting sideways in the chair with her legs over one arm and her back rested half against the other arm, half against the back of the chair and with her head resting in her palm, looking as tired and rumpled as he felt. Kirk merely smiled, walking over and toying with her ponytail.

"We're approaching Space dock." She repeated with a yawn and he smoothed her hair now, feeling her head rest against his legs – Spock deep in meditation since Nero had been defeated and Jim had been caught up with transmissions to Starfleet and getting them as prepared for their newest flagships' return – sending through reports already made his head ache.

Still, at least Command was prepared for what would be needed when they arrived – mainly in terms of medical because dear god, Bones had been caught up with getting the crew back to health, sending what reports and lists of what would be needed whenever he could, Charlie had successfully navigated the crew back home with Sulu and Chekov falling asleep at the helm.

"You've Captained this ship longer than I have Tex," He smiled and was replied with a yawn as she righted herself to a respectable sitting position.

"Not true. I'm just sitting here; you're the one doing the hard Captain yards with Starfleet."

"Sitting here is Captaining."

"Jim, you must have skipped the classes on Captaincy then," She joked tiredly and he sat on the floor next to the seat, the step right next to it and tucked his knees up to his chin with a wink.

"I was there... I just fell asleep."

"I'm awake!" Chekov suddenly called, hearing talk of sleep, Charlie laughed and when he turned to look back at the two guiltily, Charlie waved her hand.

"Go back to sleep Chekov, you've still got three minutes until its Sulu's shift." He nodded and leaned back over his station, Jim looked up at Charlie who barely noticed the unorthodox exchange.

"Do I want to know?"

"Nope."

"Keeping secrets from the Captain? Not a good start to your Officer career." He joked and she laughed bitterly, slumping even further in the seat.

"After this Jim, my career as an Officer is coming under drastic scrutiny."

"Amen," Sulu muttered with a smile over his shoulder as the space dock came into view, "Approaching Space dock, Sir." He started as Charlie stood, walking over and shaking Chekov's shoulder gently.

"Wake up Pavel. Honey, we're home." She told him quietly, sweetly as Jim took the Captain's seat and smiled at her way with people before she trudged back to her station, pulling her hair back again and stifling a yawn.

"Lowering thrusters, Captain." Chekov's accent was heavier with every minute that he was awake and Jim nodded, leaning onto the button in his console that let his voice play over the entire ship.

"Attention all crew, this is acting Captain Kirk – we're pulling into Space dock now. I hope you're all okay, please be prepared for an early debriefing, listen to all messages once we disembark. Again, thank you all for your bravery and efforts over the past few days; I know that it hasn't been easy. Kirk out." He let his finger off the button before turning to Charlie who smiled at him; her eyes green because the whites were so bloodshot and red with exhaustion.

"Was that right?" He asked and she nodded, laughing slightly as she flicked a switch on her panel.

"Very sweet Captain."

"Pretty much word for word what you wrote for me to say – at least my memory's working. Kirk to Bones." His finger hit another button and after a moment, Bone's tired voice came over the comm.; Charlie could hear that it was still chaotic in the back ground.

"Bones here."

"We're reaching Space dock."

"I heard you the first time Jim. That was a touching speech – is Charlie your speechwriter now too?" He grouched making the two on the bridge grin, Jim rubbed his jaw.

"Was it that obvious?"

"To me? Yeah."

"You don't count though. Do you need anything when we get off this thing?"

"I'd like a few hours sleep. Didn't you get my report?"

"I did... just checking in." The Captain's voice as laden with implications and Bones could tell, letting out a sigh.

"I can't give you an update on his progress Jim. Not until I know myself."

"Okay... Starfleet will be in touch. See you on the surface Bones." Charlie felt herself smile at the exchange between the two; they were such _boys_ at times that she wanted to slap them both.

"Yeah. Bones out." The line went dead as the ship pulled into the Space dock and god forbid; she didn't know how she felt about being back. It was comforting but also another unknown, facing a lot of things that Charlie really didn't want to face just yet. She kept her eyes and attention focussed onto her work as Sulu helmed the ship back to its safety net admirably, the first voices from Starfleet were welcoming them back and she'd admit, she felt herself tear up slightly, swallowing the lump in her throat as quickly as it arrived –she was not about to start crying at all. Not now, sure as hell not on the bridge.

_Belief over misery  
I've seen the enemy  
And I won't go back  
Back to how it was  
And I got my heart set on what happens next  
I got my eyesa wide it's not over yet  
We are miracles and we're not alone_

* * *

_**Author's notes:** Sorry, I don't usually do songfics and this wasn't really, the words just seemed to resonate. And sorry also, it's a day later than I'd anticipated but my shitty week continues. Meh. On the upside? I've been listening to Hanson a lot this week. Yeah, I'm not sure why either but hey - don't judge me. We all do stupid things when we're narky. :)  
Second disclaimer: I know nothing of medical terminology, the medicines are all made up... don't go asking your Doc for them. He'll be mad, they don't exist and you won't get any pretty pills. _

_Also, a quick reminder - this is the last chance to vote for your favourite background character! I'll be taking the poll down shortly, it's on my profile. _

**_Oodles of thankies to the_ **_**awesome peeps who reviewed:** FuzzehDeath, Canna, RachyDoodle, Larxenethefirefly, Skatinggirl2011, Jac Danvers, Hidden Relevance, loquaciouslethality, Duskborn, Steff7, WinchesterWench, Vulcanvamp and Raxsah003.  
**Also huge 'hi's!' to** FuzzehDeath, loquaciouslethality, Duskborn and WinchesterWench for their PM's!_

_Also, thank you to infinity to Duskborn, the Dee to my Dum, SPURBTAUN and A.A.A (Another Awesome Aussie), co-ruler of Cyber-Middle-Random-Dribbling-Earth for your linguistic genius of medical terminology when my eyes were crossing and I was about this far * holds fingers really close together* away from cyber castrating Bones when he wouldn't share with the class. :)_

_Comments would be greatly appreciated and earn non - icky love!! _

_Xx_


	23. Walking on Broken Glass

_Hi! Here's an itty bitty one... _

_**Disclaimer: ** I don't own Star Trek. No shit, huh? I do own Charlie. I would like to own Ian Somerhalder, please - if someone can make that happen, it would be much appreciated. Thank you.  
__The chapter title is from a song of the same name by Annie Lennox. The video features Hugh "House" Laurie (when he was younger!) and John Malkovich. Awesome._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

The Enterprise docked back at the station and a bunch of shaken up Cadets exited, ready to return to Starfleet and lick their wounds, count their losses and then graduate, all of them a little less spritely than before and all with the same steely look of determination behind their eyes.

The Space dock wasn't half as busy as it had been when they were boarding the _Enterprise_ days ago, the ship instead of being hailed in all of its glory, lights sparkling and the smell of fresh paint in the halls had now limped back to its station with a crack in the hull, no warp core, several decks sealed and needing a complete rebuild. Plus, Charlie wasn't sure if she was imagining it or not but it looked slightly... wonky, as though the entire ship was now on an angle.

The dock was a blur of Commanders, Captains and Starfleet hierarchy barking orders to the much smaller group that had been there days ago and as friend searched for familiar faces, there were howls of anguish when they couldn't be found or cries of sheer joy and relief when they were. For some reason, Charlotte didn't bother looking; certainty in the pit of her stomach.

Two of her best friends were dead.

A handful of her close friends had perished.

Where did a person go from there? Many of them would be asking that question and if anyone could give her an answer, she would be eternally grateful.

Though suddenly, 'eternally' didn't seem as long as it used to.

Her shuttle back to the hangar where it had all began was completely silent except for the muffled sounds of uncontrollable tears – everyone was tired and hungry on top of their grief which was starting hit everyone now that they were back in Earth's atmosphere, frayed nerves were taking their toll.

Jim had been ordered onto the first shuttle for debriefing as had Scotty, Bones was still onboard with his patients and Medical staff and she had no idea where the rest of her friends had gotten to, feeling utterly alone and lost, confused as to where she stood, what she'd seen and who she had become.

The thoughts that she had so carefully pushed away for later analysis were starting to push forward with the knowledge that she couldn't hide from them much longer – the time for analysis was nigh and though she wanted to maintain her cool, keep her composure she knew that was also deteriorating by the moment.

Her thoughts were a blurred, jumbled mess fuelled by the fact that she hadn't showered or eaten a proper meal in the last few days and the last time that she had been on Earth her biggest problem was worrying about Kirk's academic suspension – the guy who had practically been smuggled aboard was now a Captain. Go figure.

Then of course there was the fact that Bones had kissed her – that, she wouldn't let herself think about until later because it felt vain and self indulgent – people had died, her roommate and two of her best friends had died and the body count was yet to be finalised but she knew that it was far worse than she could grasp.

It was selfish and disrespectful to be thinking about how he had suddenly grabbed her and kissed her in the middle of the infirmary, how his eyes had bored into hers with a heat that she hadn't known before, how his lips were soft yet crushed hers in desperation, how his hands were exactly the way they should have felt and left her skin burning even now as... She shook her head slightly and swayed out of starvation and wariness, not allowing herself to think about Bones any more until everything else was cleaned up, however long that would take.

It was just a heat of the moment thing anyway.

The worst feeling of all was that part of her wanted to still be on the ship. Knowing where Jim and Bones were, having something to do to keep her thoughts at bay... if she wasn't lying to herself, she'd admit that the rush of being on the bridge was enlivening, it felt like it fit.

God, she was a sadist.

She was a selfish sadist who should be grieving over her deceased friends and comrades, not wishing that she was back up in space. She hung her head in shame before rubbing the back of her neck, feeling a knot the size of her fist and taking a deep breath – they were all in this situation, she needed to stay calm.

Their friends, their roommates, their crewmates had died, their captains had died, their lecturers and professors had died and they'd watched the destruction of an entire planet and all but a handful of their 6 billion inhabitants. Throughout the course of the mission the brand new flagship had changed crew numerous times and promotions had been handed out on the fly and as they disembarked all were slightly confused as to where they stood, what their rank was and where to go from there.

From Captaining the pride of the fleet, from the stress and adrenaline coercing through the crew's veins, a month of classes until they graduated suddenly seemed so feeble. Bonds had been made and trust strengthened, traits found within themselves that they never knew and the idea of sitting in the Astrometrics lab charting meteor showers seemed like a complete waste of time.

They disembarked into the hangar that had started the whole thing and it greeted her like a slap in the face. Like a bad dream, she could remember the few days before that she had stood there, steaming over Spock's treatment of Jim and their CO's use of the word 'Godspeed', Gaila dancing off towards the _Farragut_.

"_... but the one time they don't say it is the one time something really bad is going to happen. It's tradition, okay? Deal with it."_

It was like a dream that she couldn't wake up from, a nightmare that she was forced to live out.

She looked around for a familiar face though she knew that she shouldn't – the chances of her finding one were next to highly unlikely and though she would never admit it, she still held out hope that Heradee or Gaila had been pulled from their posts at the last moment and would greet her. Though admitting that to herself would mean acknowledging that neither of them did and that would result in another wave of emotion that she wasn't ready for.

Would she ever be ready?

Starfleet as a whole was shaken and halved, the first years recruits who weren't even allowed in the flight simulator yet all walking around pale faced as the reality of what they would possibly face one day hit them, never mind the fact that their dorm RA had been a Lieutenant on the _Farragut; _one of the ships with a zero survival rate in the now wrecked fleet.

Next to her, Tilly, a girl from her Biomechanics class collapsed to the ground in a pool of hysterical tears and though her heart felt for the girl, Charlie stepped over her and continued on her way – helping Tilly, comforting her would be Charlotte's own undoing.

Where to from here? So much had happened, so much was yet to be dealt with, so much hung in the air...

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** Like I said, only a little one and sole angst. It was a helluva lot more angst-ridden than this, but I've been posting chunks of my angsty drabbles on FictionPress and hopefully, I've gotten it out of my system.  
__Is anyone else watching the Vampire Diaries? I wasn't so sure at first, (thanks Winchester Wench!) but now... I'm laughing that Caroline is the "menstrual migraine" lab partner from Juno. She went from getting pissy at that weird geek guy to having Damon chewing on her neck. Girl, talk about a trade up! Lets bow our heads in respect, shall we? :)  
Sorry, am watching next eps preview at the 'mo - I'm going to be on edge until the whole thing is up. The boys will be in suits. And damn it, that Katherine girl has a lot to answer for._

_**Thanks to:** Skatinggirl2011, WinchesterWench, Canna, Cheshire Dreaming, Yayyou, Larxenethefirefly, FuzzehDeath, Jac Danvers, thebloodrose, loquaciouslethality, Duskborn, crystalclear8050, ayachan1412, Vulcanvamp, RachyDoodle, Steff7, You've Got Gold and Goatsforsale (welcome aboard - still love your name!) for their reviews.  
**Also to** FuzzehDeath (we'll get back to our regular long ass posts_ _soon, promise-o!), thebloodrose, WinchesterWench and loquaciouslethality for your awesome PM's!!! :) _

_ Right, that looks about done... next chapter will be up soon!! _

_Awesome reviews come from awesome people... :)  
**Xx**_


	24. Help, I'm Alive

_Hi! Here's another chapter, not quite as short as the last which I hope is a good thing!!_

_**Disclaimer: ** This is it right here.  
The chapter title is taken from a song by Metric. Not usually my style, but oddly enough I like it! _

_Here we go..._

* * *

It had been a rough few days and as Leonard McCoy looked around the Academy's Medical Bay, he wondered how the same place that he had spent the majority of his three years with Starfleet could look as horrific as it did now.

No matter how many surgeries he performed, no matter how many people they discharged, the place still overflowed with patients, visitors and god knows who else. Twice, he had threatened to make a strict 'no visiting' policy but gave up each time when Nurse Chapel reminded him that if it was one of his friends in here ailing and someone told him that he couldn't see them, that Doctor would be thrown through the window and then used as a human battering ram to re-enter through the door.

So he shut up and stuck to grumbling under his breath.

The rest of the fleet carrying the more senior officers were on their way back from the Laurentian system but were still a few days out, so until then he was the only surgeon that Starfleet had on campus. Which didn't make life easy for him, but at least he wasn't having to double check some infant who was yet to cut his teeth and let them hack into any one of McCoy's own patients. He could do it himself, save the worry.

Successfully, he'd managed to remove the parasite from Captain Pike using something that he couldn't even pronounce now in his exhausted state, it had been a gamble, but thankfully, it had worked. Pike was still scheduled for a couple more surgeries to fix the rest of the internal damage but Bones' main concern was his Captain's motor skills. Messing anywhere near someone's spinal cord was bad enough, but having an alien bug wrapped around it like Christmas lights to a tree was never ideal. Unfortunately, he wouldn't know any more for a little while longer. The main threat had been neutralised at least and Pike was comfortable.

"Doctor? I'm down from Engineering; we got a call about a bio bed that needs fixing?" A voice asked from behind him as the tired Doctor read over some charts and McCoy's eyes lifted to meet the other man's, the Cadet (first year, more than likely) gulping as harsh hazel eyes looked him over before sighing.

"Fine. Over here. There's that one, that one over there and this one here. The readings aren't coming up, this one is partially melted – "

"How did it melt? These are supposed to be resistant to everything!" The Engineer exclaimed with slight admonishment, it was all Bones could do to not rip the kid's head off then and there.

"Ask one of your stupid little classmates – he was trying to fix it, started a fire and then bailed. If I see that pyromaniac moron, I'm removing his spleen and mounting it above the door." He growled, trying not to smile when the other kid's hands shook slightly as he reached for his PADD.

"I might need some help on this. Don't worry; I'll stay out of your way."

"Smartest damn thing anyone's said in awhile." Bones muttered under his breath, turning and almost colliding with Nurse Chapel who didn't budge, dropping her hands to her hips and looking up at him with eyes that were professional yet harsh.

"When was the last time you got any sleep?" She started and he bit back a groan, feeling like a child answering to his mother all over again.

"Jesus, Chapel..."

"It's a simple question, Doctor."

"A few hours ago. I caught some time a few hours ago."

"You need more."

"You need to relax," He half joked, he liked Chapel – she had a good head on her shoulders and an attitude like a pit bull unlike most of the other women in white who simpered around the place. They had rarely worked together before recent events – she was top of her league, he top of his – so the powers that be tended to roster them with the lower of said leagues. Basically, Chapel got the Doctors who needed the Nurses to check their handiwork; McCoy got the nurses who did nothing but flirt. Not that he minded, he got the better end of the deal, but... Chapel had been his right hand over the last few days.

"At least eat something. There's some spaghetti in the lounge." She replied, glancing over his shoulder and dashing off toward something he didn't want to know about but was sure that she could fix. There was a yelp of pain behind him and he paused, still not turning around, feeling an odd relief when the 'Doctor!' call didn't follow.

He retreated into the Doctor's lounge that had been his home since they'd returned to Earth – a tiny room with a couch, a replicator and a few chairs crammed in. The area was rarely used normally, but recent events made it more than worthwhile. As promised, a plate of spaghetti sat on the counter and McCoy felt a surge of gratitude as he dug in, not realising how hungry he was until he'd polished off the entire plate.

"Doctor? Sorry, but can I borrow you for a moment?" A Nurse poked her head into the room and he scrambled to his feet, dropping the dish into the sink as he passed.

"What is it?"

"Cadet Kean's fever is spiking for the third time this hour." Shit. He'd had Kean open across a surgical table three times since they'd been back and once aboard the Enterprise and still, the guy was critically unstable. If he opened him up again, sure, he could reduce the fever and the problem creating the fever but whether the man's body could hold up another surgery he didn't know. Shit.

"Try another 10mg of Bendroxyl and adjust the environmental controls in his room. Hell, try a cold compress to lower his body temp. I don't want to open him up until he's time to rest even slightly." He instructed, the Nurse's lips quirked into a smile.

"Cold compress?"

"We're kicking it old school," A smile felt foreign to his lips and it disappeared as soon as it arrived when he stepped up to the next patient.

It was dark outside when the people started to drift away, when the infirmary started to quieten down each night and as the crowds diminished, Bones rubbed his neck and checked over Cadet Kean. He was responding better than he had been, but still not admirably. They'd lost another two of their patients in the ICU – he really didn't want the trifecta today.

"Doctor McCoy? There's a transmission coming through for you from Starfleet." A Nurse told him, McCoy nodded.

"Patch it into Puri's office." He hated it, but Puri's office had become something of his own and Chapel's when she needed to access the computer. The room was sparse from its former owner having packed most of his things for what was to be his long missions aboard the Enterprise, now slightly messy from the piles of paperwork that Bones and Chapel were each yet to go through.

Bones slid into the seat behind the desk that had been empty before he'd gotten to it and pressed one of the flashing buttons, Admiral Barculo's face appearing on the screen. He was the Chief of Surgery within Starfleet and was on one of the ships returning from the Laurentian system for some reason, usually stationed between Starbase 17 and the Academy. Bones had rarely dealt with him before and the man had a reputation of destroying Cadets but so far, had been nothing but a sounding board for the younger Doctor as he dealt with something that was unimaginable to anyone who hadn't seen the mass destruction first hand.

"Doctor, how are you?" The other man asked as McCoy tried to not look as tired as he felt, nodding and forcing a small smile.

"Everything is going well, Sir. We've -"

"That isn't what I asked. I asked how you are." Damn it.

"I'm okay." Bones didn't know what to add to that because he wasn't sure how he was really – his friends had died, he hadn't seen the living ones since they'd docked and he was starting to feel a little out of his league – a feeling that no Doctor ever liked. And he wanted a drink. Luckily, the Admiral took that with a nod, his dark eyes focussing on a PADD in front of him.

"How did the descending thoracic aortic aneurysm surgery go?"

"It became complicated with severe vertebral erosion. Surgery went well though, now we have to manage it with antituberculous chemotherapy. But I'm confident." He added, reaching for his coffee and wincing when he took a drink – it was cold, but he didn't care. Read: he couldn't be bothered dragging his tired ass to the replicator to get another one.

"How's Chris Pike?" Now the other man's voice held the tone of a friend asking about another, not the mentor overseeing his junior. Bones exhaled and leaned back in his seat, knitting his fingers together in what he hoped was a slightly relaxed gesture.

"No change."

"When are you going back in?"

"His BP is high, 190 over 80. We're working on lowering that and when that's at a better rate; we'll take him off dialysis then go back in."

"Damn fool. He's always liked his steak a little too much," Barculo muttered under his breath, rubbing his jaw before looking back to Bones. "We'll be back in... I can't reach my update and can't be bothered getting off my tired feet, so I'm going to say sometime. A day or less. I want you heading the infirmary as you have been; use the Doctors coming in as you need them. The nurses too." McCoy didn't move at the obvious coup being handed to him – running the Med Bay now? With this? Not a problem, he'd been doing just fine on his own, but dealing with arrogant doctors from the fleet? Ugh, he could tell now that was going to end wrong.

"Yes Sir."

"You don't seem too happy about it."

"No offence Sir – I wasn't planning on letting any of those butchers get their hands on my patients. I've seen some of their handiwork in the past and I don't want anyone undoing my work." Admiral Barculo laughed at that and Bones forced another smile – did the man think he was joking? If so, he'd be in for a ride awakening in a day or less.

"You sound like me when I was your age. Now comes the fun part as everything dwindles down... the paperwork. You haven't even looked at it yet, have you?"

"No Sir. I'm still waiting for the dwindling to start."

"Good. If you get into the habit of doing paperwork as soon as you deal with a patient, you become a robot. Don't let that happen." That elicited a real smile from the tired Doctor at the Academy, a piece of advice he knew would stick for many years to come.

"Trust me, it won't. Starfl –" Bones started when his comm. beeped, he leaned over and pressed it straight away.

"Doctor McCoy, Captain Pike's gone into renal failure!" Someone called over the comm. and Bones cut the both links, hitting the two buttons roughly as he dove from his chair.

"On my way. McCoy out! Fuck!" Was the last thing Admiral Barculo heard before his screen went dead, he sighed heavily, cutting the transmission on his end.

****

Charlie needed something to do. This was the first time since she'd been at the Academy where there was nothing to do and this was the worst possible time for her to sit about and think all of the thoughts that she didn't want to think.

Starfleet had ceased all third and fourth year classes temporarily until they figured out a course of action (not to mention that there wouldn't be many people in those classes), second year classes had been pretty much stopped also, only first year classes still remained and even then, they were mainly to keep track of the newbies and make sure none of them freaked out too much.

God forbid, she'd actually sat in on a first year class for something to take her mind off everything else. Sure, she'd never taken a linguistics class willingly, but what harm could learning a little Klingon be? After nearly choking herself to get pronunciation right, she left the class and marched through the halls, her eyes focussed straight ahead as an idea struck her – who would need help right now with a workload?

"Admiral Archer – I'm bored and I need something to do." She announced when he let her in, marching into the man's office and sitting opposite his desk purposefully, crossing her legs when he didn't say anything for a few moments.

"You're supposed to be taking some personal time."

"I have. I'm done. Now I'm bored." Her foot was tapping impatiently with what he recognised as caffeine agitation and he sat back in his chair, watching her intently. Charlie Houston was a student close to his heart, they had a good relationship.

"You haven't, you're not done."

"Fine. I'm just bored. Hey, I'm offering to help you with whatever you need doing. Need me to grade papers? I can do that. Need me to pull research? I can do that."

"You just want to grade your own paper."

"I'd give myself the A that we both know I'd get anyway."

"There's some of that Houston arrogance I've come to hear within my class walls."

"I _am_ your best student."

"Meaning that you have the loudest voice."

"Meaning that I don't back down from an argument."

"Especially if you're the one who picked it in the first place." He smiled and though Charlie could go on, she decided to pick him up on what she knew he was doing.

"You want me to keep smart mouthing you to prove that I'm okay. Newsflash Admiral, I can sass you eight ways from Sunday - you will never break me."

"If I didn't think that I'd get fired for making a Cadet cry – "

"That's laughable. How many have fled your class in tears before?" She retorted and he laughed quietly at her, wagging a finger.

"Usually because you've turned your tirade their way."

"You're supposed to be the mediator!" She replied, exasperated and when he missed his beat, she raised her arms in victory, "Ha! Yes! _Check_ and _mate_!" She laughed, probably harder than she needed to but the sensation felt new all over again to her and her giggles were somewhat hysterical. Jonathan Archer smiled and let her take the victory - she rarely showed sadness, going from her happy persona to something that the phrase 'fiery temper' didn't quite do justice – this was something new for all of them and clearly this was herway of dealing. He'd be lying if he said that he wasn't in need of someone to help him out over the next few weeks or that he dealt with grief admirably.

"Fine. You're going to be my shadow for awhile. Do some real work."

"See if I can make a Chancellor cry?"

"That one, I can't save you from," He replied with a smile, pushing a PADD and some files across the desk to her, "I've got a conference at Starbase 17 in a few days..."

****

It was the afternoon after Captain Pike had gone into renal failure and they had managed to bring him back yet again, but it was another setback that attacked his already weakened body. Most of the injuries that were coming through were simple breaks that had been suffered in battle but thought nothing of until the pain didn't go away – usually McCoy would berate anyone that foolish but mentally he had to thank their stupidity – if they had all come in as soon as the _Enterprise_ docked the Medical team would have been absolutely screwed.

A blur in the doorway startled him to more arrivals and when he saw the Starfleet officers troop in, he bit back a groan – the fleet had arrived, the fighting was sure to begin again. A few of the Nurses glanced his way and he beckoned someone over to finish setting the wrist that he was fixing as Doctor Chodere, a surgeon from a ship he couldn't remember, caught his eye.

"Dr. McCoy. It's good to see you. I've heard... I'm sorry." The other man seemed at a loss for words as one of the other surgeons appeared at his side, casting an eye over the Medical Bay before them.

"This is... fuck. We give you the place, for how long McCoy, and you trash it?" Doctor Watterson joked, having been in one of Bones' classes in his first year. The men had become fast friends and still went out for a drink (or three) whenever Gilbert Watterson was in town.

"Yeah, I figured I'd give you fleet Docs something to do." Bones replied tiredly as Chapel walked over and immediately started barking orders to the Nurses who had arrived; Admiral Barculo pushed his way to the front, paling visibly at the scene before him.

"This is the best it's looked in awhile. Have you been debriefed?" McCoy asked the handful of Doctors, Barculo nodded.

"As much as we can for now. I think more hands on deck here are more important for now, rather than hearing Starfleet's next course of action, don't you?" He asked as Bones led them on rounds, feeling like he was back in Med school all over again but past caring. For the most part everyone shut up and let him speak; a couple of Doctors tried their hand at sly comments and were met with the infamous McCoy glare, followed by the infamous Barculo glare that rivalled the first one.

Funnily enough, when Barculo handed out assignments, they were the couple of Doctors assigned to morgue duty.

He ended his tour with Captain Pike and saw the look of horror wash over his colleague's faces; Watterson typically was the first to speak.

"This is fucked up."

"He's the most stable he's been since he returned from the Narada. He went into renal failure last night, but the cocktail of meds seems to be lowering his BP and fever. Hopefully, we can get some more tests done within the next few hours if this keeps up."

"Next time you open him I want in," Barculo told Bones with a steely voice, his eyes on his friend before he straightened, "Okay. You've got some more staff here – let's get to it."

The day had passed slightly smoother than the however many previous and for that, Bones was all too grateful. No one had died and he kept glancing at the time in a vain attempt to make it to midnight without anyone coding. It would be the first sign that this nightmare was ending, that they were emerging on the other side. Barculo had told him to catch some sleep but until the clock struck midnight, he would be on duty. He wanted to see this through, to make sure that nothing happened in the next hour or so until the day turned into a new one.

"Hi." A voice startled him and he nearly fell out of his chair when he saw Charlie leaning in the doorway to the office that he had taken as his own, looking sheepish.

"Charlie, hi."

"Can I come in?" She asked and he threw her a lopsided grin, laughing slightly although the action hurt his already aching muscles. He'd kissed her and now his head ached when he thought about it, he really shouldn't have. He wanted to, dear lord, he'd wanted to for so long, but not in the infirmary whilst they were in battle, not seeing her eyes fearful and wild like that, not because he was scared shitless that with each body getting carted in one of them was going to be her.

"Like you have to ask that."

"It's customary to ask to enter when approaching an officer's office. Chief Medical Officer." She smiled, walking into the room and balancing some bags and two cups of what looked like coffee. At seeing the cups his mouth watered and she laughed, handing one over.

"I know you've probably got more caffeine in your system than necessary, but the stuff that the replicators make is dirt. And I wasn't sure when you had eaten last or when you were planning to eat so here – pasta, and a turkey on rye sand which." She handed one of the bags over and sat on the small loveseat next to his desk; he took the warm bag and pulled the pasta out straight away.

"Thanks. I haven't really had a chance to get out of Med Bay for awhile." He blushed slightly, tucking into the pasta when his stomach grumbled at the smell.

"I figured. How's it going in here? Are you making any headway?" She was the first person who hadn't asked about Captain Pike's situation and he couldn't have been more grateful – he didn't know what to tell people, every phrase he used didn't feel like he was doing the ailing man enough justice.

"Slowly. Now it's making sure that most of the heavier surgeries are healing well but we've got a lot of smaller complaints coming in now – cuts, bruises – the Nurses can do most of that but its again, space and paperwork. Luckily they gave us a crew to sort out the morgue, that's something off my list but now we have to make sure that everyone aboard the Enterprise gets their physical within the due quarantine dates." His shoulders slumped as he reiterated his workload to himself; Charlie felt more sympathy for him than anyone else.

"Have they given you more staff?"

"Yeah, a few. Thankfully. There's a few I don't like –"

"There's a surprise," She joked, the smile that it brought was more than welcome to his tired features, "But they're all trained. I'll take an asshole who knows his way around a bio bed over a nice person who doesn't any day."

"Sorry to add to your workload, but you should probably order Jim down here at some point. I'm sure he's got a few broken ribs." He sighed at Jim's insolence and shook his head, still devouring the pasta as he talked.

"I'll get him in tomorrow morning. How are you?"

"I'm fine – I didn't get injured, surprisingly. Actually no, that's a lie; I got a bruise on my leg when we reached space dock." She smiled tiredly and took a drink of her coffee – Archer had given her a ton of work - which she was grateful for - and it would more than likely keep her up for most, if not all, of the night.

"And that cut on your head. You sure it's just a bruise on your leg? I hate it when you self diagnose." He chastised her mockingly so she leaned down and pushed the leg of her boot down, revealing a large purple bruise on her calf just below her knee. He reached over and ran his finger over it lightly, causing her breath to hitch before he sat back up.

"Let me fix that. Christine!" He bellowed and Charlie shook her head, pulling her boot back up.

"Bones, leave the poor woman. It's nothing. It'll be healed by the time I have my physical."

"Better be. What are you doing tonight?"'

"Some stuff for Archer. Actually, that's one of the reasons that I stopped by – do you have a prescription that he's supposed to pick up?" She glanced at her PADD as one of the items on her 'To Do' list and when Bones didn't reply, she looked back up to see him watching her closely. She almost spontaneously combusted on the spot.

"Burying yourself in work isn't going to make anything better." He told her quietly and she met his eyes evenly, hating that he could tell her tricks a mile away.

"You going to take your own advice on board?" Her eyebrows knitted together as he glanced at the time again, nodding with a small smile.

"In seventeen minutes, I just might."

"Seventeen minutes?"

"Seventeen minutes. I can't say anymore or I might jinx it." He smiled up at her, a smile that she was used to – the same wicked McCoy smile that had often graced his features and restored some order to her world.

"Fair enough. A superstitious Bones – never thought I'd see the day."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures. You're leaving?" He asked when he realised and she nodded, reaching down to pick up her bag.

"I've got to get stuck into this stuff for tomorrow. And you have a clock to watch." She smiled when he handed over Archer's prescription and dropped it into her bag carelessly; opening her mouth to speak when an alarm sounded over the small office and a voice came over the comm.

"Doctor McCoy! Cadet Kean's crashing!" He barrelled from the room, already barking orders and Charlie paused for a moment, watching him work before slipping outside.

"Give me 3mg of Atropine."

"He's had 7mg today."

"Fine. Give me 10ccs of the substituted phenylethanolamine compound and prepare the OR. He's going to have to go in – he's got coronary perfusion." The next few minutes were spent trying to get the man stable again and then get him into surgery, the minutes after that trying to get and keep him stable, release the pressure surrounding his heart and repair what damage they could.

Bones knew that it was fruitless, the man had more scarring than any heart should, but damn it, when he crashed for a final time and wouldn't resuscitate, it was another blow that he didn't want to be dealt. Finally, after what felt like hours of operating and trying to get his heart to start again, one of the nurses started to pull the bio readers from the now dead form.

"Time of death, 0:04." Her words rang in McCoy's head as he dropped his laser scalpel onto the waiting tray, ripping his mask off and throwing it as hard as he could before kicking the equipment cart across the room, sending silver tools flying everywhere.

"Damn it!" He roared, pacing the small room like a caged animal before stalking back out into the Medical Bay, anger surging through him. Damn it, damn it all. Damn it!

"You knew that he wasn't going to make it." One of the Nurses said quietly beside him, he ripped the PADD that she needed him to sign from her hands, thrusting it back at her and cursing wildly under his breath.

"Goddamn, not today..."

"But it's after midnight. It's a new day." She pointed out smartly, as though that was meant to console him and though it should have, it didn't.

"It was too damn close. He was circling the drain, so we managed to hold him off for a few minutes? Big fucking deal." He grumbled as he stalked back to his office. Damn it, Charlie had left also – not that he had expected her to stay – what the hell was wrong with him? Right, he didn't want to face her rejecting him. Damn it all.

Pouring himself a drink, he flopped into the chair and cursed a few more times, making an attempt to start some of the paperwork that was stacking up and starting to daunt him – was he destined for a career finishing these damn files? - before his eyelids drooped more than he could ignore and within moments, he was asleep over his desk.

* * *

_**Author's Notes: **No Jim... that felt a little weird. Don't worry, we'll see him again soon!! _

_**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter:** Loquaciouslethality, Canna, Yayyou, Goats for rent, FuzzehDeath, RachyDoodle, Cheshire Dreaming, Raxsah003, Aliah McKnight (welcome aboard!), Steff7, crystalsclear8050, Jac Danvers, thebloodrose, You've Got Gold, WinchesterWench, Hidden Relevance and Vulcanvamp **- thank you again!!**  
**And a massive thanks to:** FuzzehDeath, loquaciouslethality, Goatsforsale/rent :), You've Got Gold, WinchesterWench and .Daughter of Poseidon. **for your PM's!** _

_Thanks to everyone who voted in the poll - the results were interesting! It'll still be up for a couple more days... until I can be arsed taking it down, so if you haven't voted, there's still time!!_

_Thanks again for reading, reviews are muchosly appreciated!! :)_

_Xx_


	25. Trouble Sleeping

_Hi! Here's another one...  
__Disclaimer: My kidnapping plot was foiled. Damn FBI.  
The chapter title is from two songs by the same name, both completely different, both completely awesome. The Perishers and Corinne Bailey Rae, step on up._

_Here we go..._

* * *

Charlie was exhausted but couldn't complain – Archer had her running around ragged, but it was exactly what she'd asked for. Her days were full of brushing up and preparing Jonathan Archer's files for his conference on Starbase 17 which meant outlining the varying species and their political reactions to wars in the past, making sure that nothing hit too close to home – Starfleet had been attacked, now they needed to smile pretty for the rest of the Federation to make sure that the smaller cultures didn't go running scared that such technology existed, that it could wipe out the largest fleet in the Federation thus far.

Then there was the fact that he was going to be caught up in all sorts of meetings and calls therefore couldn't teach his first year class. So he had enlisted one Charlotte Houston do it instead. And she couldn't whine – she had asked to be run off her feet, Archer would definitely throw it in her face if she drew the line at a bunch of first years. And she couldn't afford to have him tell her to take some "personal time" – Heradee's parents had arrived on campus to collect her things and it was by far the most horrible thing that she had ever experienced. Their grief radiated off them, as it had every right to, but the look of pure hatred in Heradee's Mom's eyes that Charlie was alive whilst her daughter was dead... it was a difficult time for everyone. She had to remember that, this wasn't her personal drama.

Most Cadets were still grieving or had returned home for a few days so the campus was sparse and as Uhura fell into a seat in the Mess Hall opposite Charlie, she poked at her dinner before dropping her fork.

"Do you want to go and grab something decent? Off campus? I feel like... the air's heavy here, you know?" She asked, Charlie dropped her PADD to the table and nodded.

"I know."

"Let's go somewhere cute. And please, _please_ can we talk about something that isn't death, Vulcans or work?" Uhura pleaded as they stood and disposed of their trays, Charlie pretended to be offended.

"You don't want to relive the last week? Why Uhura, I'm shocked!"

"Yeah, you've got energy for sarcasm, but not to come to the gym with me. Real nice, Charlie. No. It's not being disrespectful or anything, but I would just like to ignore the fact that our friends are dead. Ignore the fact that my illegitimate boyfriend is telling me that he needs to go and procreate with some random to repopulate his people!" Her voice rose as they exited the Mess Hall and Charlie burst out into giggles for the first time in awhile, clamping her hand onto her friends' forearm.

"Ssh! That doesn't sound so great barking it across campus!" The two girls laughed as they crossed campus and headed out into the San Francisco streets, navigating their way without really realising it.

"I would just kill for one conversation that doesn't have someone asking how I am, or if I'm okay with them breaking up with me to go back to their bond mate or whatever the hell it's called." Spock had met with the remaining Vulcans and decided that his best course of action for the moment was to "assist in the repopulation of his species" and as luck would have it, his Vulcan style betrothed was one of the few saved. Apparently this whole decision was up in the air between the Commander and Uhura but... it didn't sound too good from what Charlie had heard.

"He just needs to get his head around things. He'll see reason." She urged Uhura who sighed again, waving off the topic with her hand.

"Ugh. I would kill for some old fashioned, girly type gossip." She sighed and Charlie smiled cryptically, the two taking a table outside at one of the cafes that the four girls had often frequented. Drinks were ordered quickly before she spoke, her eyes dancing as she read over her menu.

"I may have something to contribute in that arena."

"There _is_ nothing of gossip worthy proportions lately!"

"Is Bones kissing me of gossip worthy proportions?" Charlie asked smugly and as the words hit her, Uhura let out a shriek that made the other patrons look over.

"Oh my god!"

"Would you keep it down?! It's not to be broadcasted!"

"Like hell it isn't! Oh, we're going to need another please!" Uhura gasped, holding up her now empty glass as the waiter walked over to take their dinner orders. Charlie divulged every little moment from the _Enterprise_ to do with Bones with Uhura listening intently (aside from the small bouts of loud cheering she took to doing after a few more drinks) and then berated her friend for not doing anything now that they were on home soil before the girls finally wandered back to the Academy.

"I'm going to see Spock. Let's see how round 3 billion goes of this never ending, mature adult discussion that we keep having goes, shall we?" When she tried to roll her eyes, Uhura nearly tripped over her own feet but steadied herself, holding up a palm to her friend, "And you – I've slept in Spock's bed since we returned. Bones will help you sleep. He will..." She trailed off and wandered off in the vague direction of the Commander's quarters, Charlie watched her go, partially to make sure that Uhura didn't end up eating dirt as she entered the main Professor suites.

Confusion was etched across her face at the other girls' raving madness – Bones would help her sleep? What the hell? Clearly Uhura's tolernace for wine wasn't what it used to be.

***

He was a Doctor, a surgeon and a damn good one at that and surgeons were used to precision, clacualted risks with a life on knifes' edge. But everything with Charlie was up in the air and he didn't know what to do, not wanting to hear her rejection or see the look in her eyes that he'd imagined a thousand times before when she told him that she just thought of him as a friend, a brother like she did Jim.

There was no way back from that kind of rejection and it festered within him as he sorted thorugh his files, wondering if he'd ever get all of the paperwork done that needed to be handed in before they found Puri's replacement.

He sighed and tipped his head back so that it hung over the back of the chair he felt like he'd been in for days, trying to remember the last time he'd had a decent nights' sleep – it would have been the morning before Jim's hearing. Hell, he had barely left the infirmary for anything other than a brief trip to his quarters for a shower or the Mess Hall when Chapel and her seemingly undeniable talent of being able to mind-read that the entire Medical staff were starving had screamed like a banshee at him when he'd stopped just short of giving himself a shot of IV when Med Bay had been full and he'd been ravenous.

"Christine?" He called from the office and within moments, the Nurse scurried in with a hypo spray in hand.

"Yes Doctor?"

"That isn't for me, is it?" He smiled, indicating the spray with a quirk of his eyebrows and she smiled, shrugging.

"It depends what you wanted."

"How is it out there?"

"Better... Again, it depends what you wanted."

"Can you do without me for fifteen minutes?" He asked sheepishly and she rolled her eyes, having been unsuccessful in her previous attempts to get him out of the Medical Bay even only for five minutes for something that wasn't a shower and shave.

"Of course we can. I'll call you if there are any problems. Why don't you take the rest of the night off?" They both knew that it was a bad idea but both also knew that he wouldn't as the man stood and wiped his hand over his face, Christine felt a pang of sympathy for the Cadet. Undoubtedly one of Starfleet's best Doctors (if not _the _best), still a Cadet and working more hours than his body would let him – she'd seen him sleep under his desk, on it and next to it over the past week but there was still so much to be done, the poor boy. It had fallen on his shoulders because of his surgeon's blend of talent and arrogance, barking orders and keeping a cool head when others couldn't made him CMO material on the spot.

"Yeah, okay. We'll see." He replied sarcastically at her expression, shrugging on a jacket and stopping when Christine held up her palm to him.

"Take off your tunic, Doctor." It was covered with god knows what and he blushed, slipping his jacket back off and throwing the tunic into the scrubs waste bin, pulling his jacket back on over his undershirt.

"Promise me you'll get some food whilst you're gone?" She nagged and he couldn't help but laugh, sliding his communicator deep into his pocket.

"I'll see what I can do. Do you want anything?"

"I'm fine, thank you."

"Call me if anything, _anything_ happens, okay?"

"I will. Go." She ushered him out the door and he rolled his eyes with a small smile at her relentlessness, his head down, hands in pockets as he crossed the campus.

Christine watched him go for a moment, trying to size him up – she suspected that he had a girlfriend because she'd hear him mention a girl to that Jim guy she was always patching up.It was more than likely the blonde Cadet that she'd seen McCoy with before the Nero fiasco, Christine couldn't remember her name. She didn't pay much attention to any Cadets normally but Doctor McCoy was a good man and he deserved even better.  
Watching him walk towards the labs put a smile on her face as she turned back to the Bay, shaking her head slightly. That girl had better appreciate him.

She was in the Astrometrics lab, exactly where he knew she would be and as he peered through the open door, a smile crossed his lips.

She was muttering quietly under her breath and threw her hair over her shoulder haughtily, cursing as she obviously got a result that she didn't like, her fingers drumming madly on the side of the console that she was leaning over. He could only see her from the back (which wasn't a bad view, he smirked) and took a moment to let his eyes graze her curves, feeling a dull ache settle in his core.

What the hell had he done, kissing her like that? For starters, she was probably trying to avoid him now, he had more than likely ruined any friendship... barring her visit to the infirmary to bring him food earlier. And even if she didn't hate him, there was no way that he should have kissed her like _that_. She deserved more... and if he was only ever going to have one chance, he wanted to kiss her long and slowly; savour every moment.

Apparently, there were more thingsthat had become a casualty of war than most knew.

"Hey." His voice startled her and she jumped a mile, clutching her palm to her rapidly beating heart.

"Wow, you scared me. How're you doing?" She asked breathlessly, he didn't even try to make sense of the calculations that littered the screen she had been glaring at. She looked tired but he imagined that he looked no better; she smiled up at him and gestured to his outfit.

"Going out?" He wasn't in his Medical tunic so it was a brief assumption and she tried to keep her voice light, not sure how she was supposed to feel if he was going out to do god knows what with god knows whom. He let out a short bark of laughter at her question, shaking his head.

"No, I just had to get away from Medical Bay for ten minutes and I figured you'd be here. Everything okay?"

"I'm fine. How are you? Things starting to slow down?"

"A little. But there's more paperwork than I ever thought possible." He managed a small smile as he leaned over the railing in Astrometics, looking up to the starred screens that coated the room, looking like the roof had disappeared and the sky was within their reach.

"Ouch."

"You know, I think your Astro-Bureaucracy quiz might be postponed just a little longer," He pointed out at her charts and when she smiled, Bones could see just how tired and worn out she was.

"I know – this is work for Admiral Archer." She replied, making Bones frown viciously. He'd never dealt with Admiral Archer directly, but knew that man worked Charlie harder than anyone else; this was ridiculous.

"Why don't you tell him there are other Cadets out there that can shoulder some of the work?"

"Why don't you? You're not the only Cadet in Medical, you know." She reminded him with a smile and he bit his lip, shrugging her.

"I was the only Cadet with a surgical major left. And until the rest of the fleet arrived back, I was the only surgeon on campus." Her jaw lowered at his information and she typed something furiously into the panel in front of her before turning back to him.

"You're kidding? Why are we so under staffed – aside from the whole Nero thing? How many Doctors were aboard the _Enterprise_ at first? You and Puri, that surely can't be enough!" She ranted, her cheeks pinking up slightly as she got worked up. Obviously Starfleet would be focussing on recruitments now, clearly Doctors, surgeons more so would be on the high priority list.

His eyes watched hers as she ended her rant with a frustrated sigh – considering that he looked incredibly tired, his eyes were sparkling. God, she could stare into them forever and never get bored, they were a little more on the green side of hazel at the moment and were searching hers, she felt her breathing constrict intensely as her pounding heart took over every function in her body.

"That was all there was from Starfleet. Most others were on Starbases and the like. Face it – I'm a rare breed." He joked lightly and it made her laugh, the sensation foreign to her over the past few days.

"I can verify that."

"When was the last time that you slept?" He asked her quietly, his eyes still boring into hers and making her surreptitiously grab the railing for support, cracking a half smile and rolling her eyes.

"Is that the question of the night? Or did Uhura say something?" She asked lightly and he shook his head, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Nope. I'm not blind and I'm a Doctor – no one had to say anything."

"When was the last time that you slept? And not over your desk." She added when a smirk snuck over his lips, he stretched and she could hear his back crack.

"Awhile. What's your excuse?"

"I don't want to sleep in a room where the girl I shared it with is dead. Her stuff is already gone... I won't sleep. I know it." She shrugged whilst he felt like he'd been punched in the gut – why had he not thought of that? If Jim had been killed, he would probably feel the same way.

"Why don't you crash at our place? I'm not there, Jim's probably not there -"

"Thanks, but I'm okay." She cut him off with a smile as his communicator went off and he cursed, flipping it open.

"Yeah?"

"Sorry, Admiral Barculo wants a word on Captain Pike's course of action." Came Chapel's empathic voice and he sighed, cursing again.

"I'll be right back. McCoy out." Charlie smiled sympathetically and he tipped his head back, groaning before righting himself and scrubbing his jaw with his palm.

"Sorry, I've got to go. Get some sleep, okay?"

"Heed your own orders Doc!"

"I'll get some sleep when you get some sleep!" He smiled, leaning in the doorway and feeling his temperature hike when she grinned.

"_I'll_ get some sleep when _you_ get some sleep!"

"Looks like we might have to sleep together," He smiled once more before disappearing, leaving Charlie standing there with her skin on fire and her stomach in knots.

Damn him.

_It's late and I'm feeling so tired having trouble sleeping  
This constant compromise, between thinking and breathing_

_Could it be I'm suffering, because I'll never give in  
Won't say that I'm falling in love  
Tell me I don't seem myself,  
Couldn't I blame something else?  
Don't say I'm falling in love..._

_

* * *

_

**Author's Notes:** Sorry I've been late in posting, I've had a crazy week and it looks set to be a crazy weekend also. In saying that, I've also been writing an original piece which is taking over my mind...

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter:** Fuzzeh, Larxenethefirefly, Hidden Relevance, Aliah McKnight, crystalclear8050, Goats for rent, Steff7, dswynne, You've Got Gold, Yayyou, Raxsah003, Vulcanvamp, Canna, WinchesterWench, loquaciouslethality and RachyDoodle.  
**And to the awesome PM's that I love getting: ** Fuzzeh, Hidden Relevance, WinchesterWench, loquaciouslethality, .Daughter of Poseidon. and Goats for Rent!  
Also to everyone who ghost reads, hope you're liking everything thus far!!

If there's anyone i've missed, I'm sorry - I don't hate you, I just suck at writing stuff down. My bad.

Pretty, pretty please review! :)  
Xx


	26. Honestly

_Hi! Here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy it!_

_**Disclaimer:** I don't own Star Trek, but I own Charlie, Admiral Turch and the old hoodie that I stole from my friends' car. Hey dude, you shouldn't have left it unlocked, you don't know what kind of weirdos are around..._  
_The chapter title is the same of a song by Cartel, a pretty easy listening rockish-style band._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

The chime sounded over his office that someone wanted to see him and Bones blinked a few times before looking up, his eyes having been focussed on the screens in front of him.

"Enter."

Paperwork was giving him an absolute headache and when he saw that it was Charlie in his doorway he smiled, sitting back in the chair that he had rarely left in the last 48 hours.

"Hi. Busy?" She asked and he smiled, stretching his arms up and yawning. She walked further into the office and stood opposite his desk, Bones indicated for her to sit but she shook her head.

"Just updating some files. I think it's never ending." He admitted and she laughed, hitching her bag further up on her shoulder and indicated the numerous empty coffee cups that were littering the desks' surface.

"Apparently so. Think you can steal some time tonight? I had lunch with Chekov today and we –"

"You had lunch with the Russian kid?" He didn't mean for it to sound so brusque or like he was disapproving but really, if there was anyone that she should be having lunch with, it was him. Why? He didn't know. Well he knew, but wouldn't think about it at the moment.

"Yeah, he hasn't really had a chance to talk to anyone, you know? We were both in the labs and... well, anyway. So no one has really had a chance to hang out lately and we're all working so hard, we're thinking a few drinks tonight?" She asked and he thought for a moment – he shouldn't go because there was so much work to be done but he should go because he didn't want to the Russian kid to get too friendly with his girl.

"Can I see how I go for time?" He asked diplomatically after a moment and she frowned, looking unhappy.

"No you can't. You've got to leave this office at some point and it's not going to be a huge night – just put in some face time and then you can come back here after and return to your paperwork." She told him with a slight smile, he caught her eyes and held them for a moment, thinking of all the ways he'd rather end a night.

"You make it sound like a diplomatic mission."

"See you tonight, 21:00 hours, at West's?" She phrased it as a question yet he knew that it wasn't, pushing himself tiredly to his feet with every intention of getting some more coffee and to walk her out.

"We'll see. I might be late," He mightn't even go at all, depending how much he could get done as they walked back out into Med Bay, she shook her head, rounding on him with icy blue eyes that were grim.

"Late? Fine. Non – attending? Not an option. And we all know where you'll be – don't make me send a drunk Jim down here to get you." She threatened as Christine walked past; Charlie turned and caught the woman's sleeve.

"I'm sorry, Nurse Chapel is it?" She asked, having seen the woman in the Bay numerous times before, the other blonde woman smiled politely.

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you a favour?"

"Charlie..." Bones muttered warningly, the two women smiled and at that moment, he knew that he was trapped. Damn women.

"Of course." Christine replied, Charlie grinned devilishly.

"Bones has barely left this place and we're trying to get him out for a drink tonight – can you make sure that he doesn't stay here? 21:00 hours, I'm sure he'll pull some sort of excuse or make someone sick just so he can cut them open – can you make sure that if he does that, you stab him with something? Preferably a scalpel or a hypo spray, but I'm not that fussed." Charlie asked the Nurse who laughed, nodding.

"Of course. You need to get away from this place for even ten minutes, Doctor."

"Don't you start," He grumbled in reply, the two girls ignored him and although he could have left them, he didn't want to give them a chance to devise something that he couldn't hear.

"He will definitely be there." Nurse Chapel promised and Charlie grinned, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Excellent. You should come too; it's just a few harmless drinks –"

"Harmless? Right," Bones muttered again and again, both women ignored him.

"That sounds like fun. I'll be there and so will the workaholic Doctor. Charlie was it?" The Nurse asked and Charlie nodded, pleased that she'd not only managed to cajole Bones into giving up the paperwork for the night but also potentially made a new friend.

"Sure is."

"Call me Christine."

"Awesome. I'll see you both tonight, 21:00 hours at West's." She smiled, smugly patting Bones on the chest as she left the Med Bay; he rolled his eyes and stalked over to the replicator, snapping at it for his coffee as Chapel charged the Tri Corders. Damn women.

***

Charlie was going with Admiral Archer to a briefing for his conferences at Starbase 17 and as she walked through the halls towards one of the many debriefing rooms, her stomach twisted into itself with nerves. A room full of Admirals and Starfleet hierarchy? Not exactly the most comfortable of situations, especially since the Nero incident, most of said hierarchy had taken to greeting her as they passed in the halls. Almost as though they considered her an equal.

It was terrifying.

She approached the specified room and took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders and stepping through the doors when they opened, casting an unemotional eye over the room – there were already a few people seated, older Admirals who still made her scurry out of their way if she saw them in the halls. For all of her bravado, Charlotte Houston was mostly a petrified little girl when she wasn't completely sure about something.

A pair of ice blue eyes met hers and she let out a squeal as Jim dove up from his seat and ran around the table to greet her, laughing into her hair when Charlie literally jumped on him, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

"Tex!"

"Jim! Oh thank god." She murmured after a moment into his shoulder – they hadn't seen each other since they'd docked and truth be told, it wasn't a nice feeling. On top of everything that they were going through, had gone through, not having the friends that were remaining around was the lowest, cruellest blow.

"How are you? Are you okay? Bones said that you aren't sleeping and I heard Heradee's parents came to get her stuff..." Jim suddenly started talking fast and she pulled away, nodding her head as he fired questions at her, eyes earnest.

"I'm fine, I'm okay. How are you? You're still all banged up – why haven't you gone to Medical? Jesus Jim, how are you ribs?" She asked, lifting his shirt without a thought like a fussing Mother, he smiled and batted at her hands, smiling slightly.

"I'm fine – I've got an appointment later. I've been tied up! Apparently I'm not the only one," He replied pointedly, brushing his fingers over the scratch on her forehead, ignoring the comments and worry that sparked at her tired appearance, he was sure that he didn't look much better.

"They're a good team." Admiral Turch remarked to Admiral Archer as the two men made themselves coffee before the proceedings, indicating the two Cadets who were trying not to draw attention to each other but though neither noticed it their apparent reunion had been watched closely.

"Always have been. Bonnie and Clyde." Archer remarked with a smile, Turch watched them for a moment longer talking frantically, trying to keep their voices down and make sure that the other wasn't hurt.

"Has Pike seen them together? Aside from the mission?"

"I assume so. He's the one that recruited the Kirk kid and though Charlie mentioned that she rarely knows him; I assume he's kept tabs on her from afar."

"I always wondered how 'Bonnie and Clyde' managed to stay in the Academy with their records." Turch joked pointedly at Archer, the guardian angel on Charlie's side though she had no idea, bailing her out from a higher position when her trouble caught up with her. Which hadn't been so much lately, but in her first few semesters she caused Archer a few headaches.

"As far as I know, neither has been convicted of anything. Just a few harmless pranks, a few fights after a night out – pretty much the same record as yours, Arthur." Jonathan winked as the two men took their seats, Charlie fell into the seat that was indicated to her beside him – a weight was clearly visible off her shoulders. Admiral Archer glanced to the Kirk kid (who he still held reservations about, but didn't doubt the kid was some kind of Starfleet prodigy, much like his good friend) and saw the same relief visible.

Their relationship was duly noted by every person in the room.

***

"Are you ready Doctor?" Nurse Chapel asked later that night, leaning in the doorway to his office with a look that told him that if he wasn't ready, she would do as Charlie asked and stab him with something. Great. The two main females in his life were in cohorts and both clearly had violent tendencies. Just fucking brilliant.

"Yeah, just let me..." He murmured, having changed but was finishing up a report for the supplies that they needed, he was asking for a lot that wasn't the norm to treat Pike with so he figured that the report had better come from him.

"I can get a scalpel and a hypo spray in a matter of seconds and make good on the deal that I struck..." She teased, stepping further into his office as he let out a sigh, shutting his computer down and standing, stretching his arms up again with a wry grin.

"I think you and Charlie should never speak again. And it's Bones. Or Leonard, Leo, McCoy... not Doctor. That's creepy." He replied, pulling his jacket on as she smiled again, it was bizarre to see her in civilian clothes and not the customary white Nurses' uniform.

"Christine then. Come on, I dread to think what your girlfriend would do if you were late – not a blame that I wish to take," She chided as they left messages for the night shift, checked on Pike once more and then left, Bones looked down at the Nurse as they walked, confused.

"Girlfriend?"

"Charlie. The two of you are together, aren't you?" She asked and he let out a bark of laughter, not even attempting to hide the expression he was sure crossed his face – confusion, shock... a bit of everything.

"No, no we're not. We're... friends. It's purely platonic." He told her, ignoring the constricting feeling across his chest as Christine shook her head, laughing lightly. What a dense man the Doctor was.

"The greatest of all sins is stupidity." She replied in a sing-song voice with a knowing look, his eyebrows shot up to his hairline.

"Excuse me?"

"Bones, let me tell you – there is nothing platonic there." She chuckled knowingly and he didn't know what to say to that, wanting to ask what she meant but also wanting to keep some of his dignity intact. Eventually, he settled for a shrug because that was all he could offer to nearly every question related to everything at the moment.

They dropped the subject headed towards the nearest bar, Bones pushed open the door when they got there, seeing a large group of people in the middle of the room, every face he recognised.

There was a round of greetings and introductions and though until the attack (which was only just over a week ago) barely any of the people seated hadn't known each other, it felt comfortable being around them, like the group had known each other all their lives.

Drinks were dealt and words were shared, most steered clear of the subject that had forced them together, it was odd, but nice to see everyone smile, dotted throughout the bar.

"So, you and Bones – have you discussed it yet?" hura asked quietly as both girls waited for their drinks at the bar, Charlie shook her head.

"'Hura, I've barely discussed anything with anyone. How is everything with Spock?" She winced when she asked and it was Uhura's turn to shake her head, a long, straight ponytail whipping around her shoulders.

"He's so... wigged out with everything. I mean, he has an allegiance to the Vulcan people, I get that. But he also has an allegiance to us, to me, doesn't he?" her friends' eyes were so sad, so desperate for him to make the decision that, in her mind, should have been cut and dry that Charlie reached out and gave her a hug.

"He'll realise that who he is and who he feels that he needs to be aren't always the same thing, I'm sure of it... well now I'm _really _sure." She smiled as her eyes fixed on a point over Uhura's shoulder; the Vulcan man himself had stepped over the bar's threshold was casting dark eyes over the large room, searching for someone particular. Uhura turned and saw the same figure that Charlie did, turning back with her jaw lowered slightly in shock and her eyes now dancing with unbridled delight.

"I never would... oh my god." She was floored and it was a sight to behold, Charlie smiled as Spocks' eyes saw them, taking her drink from the bar.

"Looks like he's well on his way to figuring a few things out. Go." She urged, the visible change in her friend too sweet for words. Nyota Uhura had always been the rock, the unmoveable girl who changed for no man, made them change for her, never got too emotional or wrapped up in the drama of a relationship... clearly Commander Spock was different to the rest. It was a sight to see.

She could see Jim sitting in a booth up the back with at least three girls hanging off his arms and his Cheshire – like smile in full swing, she sighed and rolled her eyes. She couldn't hear what he was saying but the bimbos, sorry, girls that were draped over him like the cheap dresses that they wore. She didn't mean to be a bitch but hey, Jim was clearly drunk, clearly looking for a cheap thrill and clearly going to get it. It was life.

It was one of the tamer nights that Jim, Bones and Charlie had spent at the West's bar which was understandable and as the night drew to a close and the gang stood outside saying their goodbyes, Bones carefully dropped an arm around Charlie's shoulders.

"Come on," He told her as Jim called out to him from a fair way in the opposite direction.

"Bones! I'm going to be late tomorrow!" The man had no shame and clearly however much it was agreed that James T. Kirk had grown up over the past week or so, he was still an infant when it came to his three loves – women, booze and sex.

"Whatever Jim."

"Hey, at least you get to stab him with a hypo for whatever disease that girl gives him." A voice popped up next to him, Charlie's nose was screwed up at Jim's choice for the night.

"Jealous?" He joked; momentarily thankful that he knew that would never be the case.

"I am. I thought I had a chance with her tonight."

"Sorry." He replied simply as they walked back towards campus, her hand was resting lightly in the top of the back pocket of his jeans and her head tucked into his shoulder, his arm around her shoulders, his cheek resting lightly on the top of her head. It sent both of their pulses racing but both ignored it yet again – as much as there was the question of that kiss in the air, at the moment they were still repairing their worlds that any more drama, good or bad, would get in the way. Both needed to be at least somewhat whole before they could face each other head on.

It was an unspoken mutual understanding which suited them fine – it would be a life changing talk no matter what – he would either lay the cards on the table to have them thrown back at him, which would burn him for good, or she could say that she felt the same and from then on, no other woman would compare. Both were stressful prospects.

"Where are we going?" She asked as they walked across campus, her voice was light and clearly she was half asleep, his eyes were drooping also and his limbs felt exceedingly heavy.

"My room."

"You're not getting any." She replied jokingly and the laugh that they shared was painful to the sleep that was setting over their bodies.

"God forbid, I'm too damn tired. You're crashing with me and getting a good nights' sleep."

"You're just jealous that I had lunch with Chekov." Her head was buried in his shoulder even more now and they walked into the boys' dorms, it took him two tries to hit the access code on his door because his eyes were blurring.

"A little." He admitted, the filter from his brain to his mouth clearly already asleep and she smiled tiredly, pulling her shoes off and throwing her bag on his desk.

"Good." His shoes were kicked off and his shirt hit the floor, his eyes barely open and his brain barely registering that she was stepping out of her jeans.

"Do you want some pyjamas?" He asked hoping that she didn't – looking for some meant moving.

"Nope," Her jeans were gone and only her tank remained, she looked over to Jim's bed, the place that she had slept many times over the years when Heradee had kicked her from their room and Jim was god knows where, seeing it covered with junk. "Filthy pig..." She muttered, attempting to push the stuff away but she could barely see, her eyes were half closed and after a moment she gave up and turned, crawling into bed beside Bones.

"Remind me to thank the filthy pig," He yawned as he blessed his good fortune and smiled to himself, reaching and wrapping his arms tightly around her and pulling her closer to him, she said nothing but snuggled in deeper to his embrace.

"'Night." Speaking took effort; she was so comfortable, feeling his bare skin against hers, her legs brushing his.

"Sweet dreams," He replied in the same tired voice, both fast asleep within seconds.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** _Hey, you said that you wanted them in bed together... you ask, I give! Aren't I sweet? :) *ducks things being thrown* Sorry!_

_**To the awesome peeps who reviewed the last chapter: ** Aliah McKnight, Yayyou, NaomiBlue, FuzzehtheawesomenessQueenofalltheawesomenesses, Goats for Rent, Larxenethefirefly, Ac Colins (Welcome aboard!), VikingShadow, Cheshire Dreaming, Hidden Relevance, Duskborn, ayachan1412, You've Got Gold, Canna, Jac Danvers, thebloodrose, Raxsah003, Vulcanvamp, OurLoveIsForever (welcome aboard!), WinchesterWench and Orbitbystarlight (Welcome aboard!) - you guys are living legends!!! :)_

_**And to** Fuzzeh and Hidden Relevance for their PM's! Thank you!! :)_

_Okies... I'm umm-ing and ahh-ing over the next chapter, there's one thing that I'm unsure about adding so if I can't make up my mind, it might be a few days or so. Sorry... I'm the Queen of Indecisiveness!!_

_Reviews are greatly appreciated!!  
Xx_


	27. Where I Stood

_*Hides from things being thrown*  
I'm so sorry for the delay! Lets just say that a new job, boys, same mistakes, drama, Halloween and a head cold all kind of kicked my ass over the past... well, since the last update. Not literally, I should just add, all figuratively. :)_

_At least we left Bones and Charlie tucked up in bed, right?_

_Disclaimer: Here 'tis. The chapter title is taken by the song of the same name by Missy Higgins and I swear to you blindly, listen to it - it is Charlie's exact thoughts during this chapter. I promise you, totally mirrored. Pretty freaky, considering its also a kick ass song. :)_

_Sorry again, here we go..._

* * *

Bones' eyes opened and the first thing he felt was a wave of comfort and joy wash over him, the second thing he felt was a sweet weight on his chest and when he looked down, a Cheshire grin spread over his jaw. Charlie was in his bed and although nothing had happened, her head was on his chest, their bodies wrapped around each other, her arm flung across his stomach, his arm holding her to him tightly. Whoa. She was still fast asleep and her breath on his skin felt better than he ever could have imagined; the feel of her bare legs entwined with his was better than all of his fantasies combined.

His fingers ran through her hair carefully and then over her features and only then did her eyelids flutter open, her eyes meeting his instantly and making his heart skip a beat. This was exactly how he wanted to wake up every morning for the rest of his life.

"Good morning." Damn straight it was. He wanted to dive out of bed and break out into a happy dance, jump on his mattress like a child and scream out the window – but that would mean disturbing her so he stayed put.

"I climbed in here last night, didn't I? Sorry..." She dropped her head onto his chest, embarrassed. Exhaustion apparently was a hallucinogen to her, or maybe Bones had slipped her something... Really, she couldn't have cared less because she was more comfortable than she could remember being in a very long while. His skin was warm and his chest was hard but she would rather sleep as they had than ever use a pillow again.

He wound his fingers through her hair, trying not to sound too eager - if she didn't keep squirming against him the way she was though, she'd find out on her own soon enough.

"Don't be. Jim's bed is really only used as a storage unit anyway," He joked lightly, mentally thanking the slob that he roomed with for trashing his half of the quarters. Not that McCoy's were any better, but at least his bed was clear. _Thank you God._ "Sleep well?" He asked after a moment, his voice soft and gravely, his Southern accent pronounced more than it normally was.

"Better than I have in awhile," Understatement of the year, meet Charlotte Houston. Charlie, meet understatement of the year, "How about you?"

"Like a baby." He replied, stretching very slightly and sliding further down the mattress, taking her with him, one hand running up and down the small gap of skin on her back where her tank had risen up. It was sending shockwaves through her but none that she ever wanted to stop; it was the most difficult thing to not jump out of bed or onto the mattress like a child, not to scream from the windows in pure excitement.

There was a moment of contented silence before she readied herself, leaning up on her elbows slightly and pushing her hair from her face, looking around for a second.

"What time is it?"

"Computer – time." He ordered immediately, wondering if she would flee if he kissed her now. He was feeling pretty hopeful – but then again, he was feeling a lot of things – she didn't have pants on, only undies, so he could feel long bare legs twisted into his.

"The time is 08:34 hours." The polite voice chirped over the room and there was a split second where Charlie relaxed before she gasped, sitting up and looking more than panicked.

"What?!"

"Just after eight-thirty. Why?" Bones asked and she looked down at him, horror stricken. By her sitting up she had knocked the quilt off them so looking down over him; she was treated to an eyeful of toned and tanned torso, confused hazel eyes watching her carefully.

"I've got a meeting with Archer at 800 hours!" She cried suddenly, flying from the bed and cursing under her breath, scrambling into her jeans and glancing around frantically for her shoes, "Where the hell are my boots?!" She cried, having grabbed them before she finished her sentence and pulling them on, all the while cursing under her breath.

"You're allowed to be late – I'm your Doctor and I ordered you to sleep." Bones told her easily, shivering from the cold air that hit him at her departure from his body.

"He's going to kill me..." Muttering under her breath like a crazy person seemed to make her thoughts even more jumbled – Archer would be on the warpath – god, what if he'd used the computer to track her? That annoying, tinny voice telling him that she was in Bones' quarters? How embarrassing!

What if he thought that she was with Jim? Ugh.

She wouldn't even have time to get coffee. After a morning like this, with looming thoughts that were sure to pound at her skull as soon as she left? Double ugh.

"You're allowed to be late every once in awhile, Charlie."

"Not to a meeting with an Admiral! I'll see you later," She replied, snagging one of his sweaters and sliding it over her head, leaning over his form and pressing a kiss to his forehead, shocking the both of them as she fled. Her pulse was racing as she bolted from the boys' rooms and across to the girls – skidding into Admiral Archers' office late and in a boys' sweatshirt wouldn't be appropriate... no matter how great it smelt.

She should have just kissed his lips and then bolted. Hey, if he could do it, why couldn't she? And what the hell was she thinking, climbing into bed with him last night? What if he'd taken it the wrong way?

Wait, climbing into bed with the guy you like – there _is_ no wrong way for it to be taken.

***

Jim pulled his tunic off and stepped into the shower, the warm water comfortably coating his skin. His days were suddenly so long and his playtime so short, Starfleet had him in questioning for days, reliving every damn moment from the _Enterprise_ time and time again, to different people, all with the same questions. He had felt like a criminal in interrogation; he knew that some would more than likely argue that he was.

Then he had apparently become Starfleet's bitch, Admirals and a couple of Chancellors putting him to work in analysing and providing his thoughts and knowledge on Nero and the Romulan vessel from the future, watching the transmissions and hearing the battle transmissions that were recorded automatically. Hearing his voice sentencing Nero to death hit him like a sharp slap in the face every time he heard it, hearing Charlie give the command to fire on he and Spock made tears prick at his eyes. Hearing the transmissions in the Communications lab from the other ships, hearing their anguished cries and their howls of pain were pushing him to his psychological limits, never mind the small group of linguistic and comms majors who were sorting through the transmissions and wiping their eyes as silent tears still fell.

He had faced his fathers' killer and won.

Telling his Mother that fact was not dinner time conversation and over the transmission he could see her large eyes fill with tears, her forehead crease as she tried to comprehend what her son was saying, the fear that she had nearly lost her baby boy to the same monster, the memories of George that flooded her mind at his mention.

Nero deserved to be brought back so that Jim could kill him again just for making him have that conversation.

Needless, he had ended it quickly, citing that he had a meeting and so far, Winona had stayed away from campus. Though she had asked after his friends and Captain Pike, visibly relieved when they were all okay. Well, Pike had a long road of physical therapy ahead of him should his motor skills come back and as for Jim's friends, well, these scars would run deep for all of them.

He stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, using his palm to wipe the steam from the mirror before looking at himself – eyes were bloodshot with purple bruises underneath them, his left eye with a deep purple and blue bruise encircling it. His right had a large scratch over his eyebrow and another down his temple, his left cheekbone was a black and blue mottled pattern and his jaw line was shadowed with the same effect. Looking down at his torso, the blue and purple bruises were starting to turn to a greenish yellow colour and he ignored the distinct finger marks around his neck from when Spock had lost in on the bridge and almost succeeded in choking him to death.

"Pointy eared bastard," He muttered to himself with a small smile as he dressed, only to have seen said man in the halls once and at the bar the night before. But even then, the Vulcan hadn't been overly talkative, arriving and leaving minutes later with Uhura. _Nyota_, he amended mentally with a wider smile, pulling his shoes on as something on Bones' nightstand caught his eye. It was Charlie's bracelet and when he reached over to double check, his smile turned sly. _Bones, you dog._

***

Bones stomped through Medical Bay barking orders like he owned the place (no one would dispel that notion in current situation), almost bursting a blood vessel when a second year Doctor, who was supposedly competent, had given blood thinner to a haemophiliac. That put the 'competent' theory was up for re-evaluation.

In the harsh light of day and the distance from Charlie's arms, doubt was starting to seep in like he had expected – she had been tired the night before, Jim's bed had been covered – they were friends. Their relationship was _platonic_.

Why did that notion leave an uneasy pit in his stomach? Sure, they had an unspoken agreement to not discuss the kiss until the severity of the whole Nerogate had been dealt with, but there was a point where their actions just couldn't be ignored anymore.

That pit in his stomach tightened when he realised their morning together may have been that point and he cursed, throwing an empty container into a waste bin with more force than necessary.

"Doctor?" A voice piped up from behind him and he spun, ready to yell at whoever about the first thing that he could find to pick on to see Chapel in all of her feigned doe-eyed innocence. She was the exception to his rule of screaming and yelling, not only because she was more than competent (in any mood slightly less sour than his current, he'd admit that she was a damn good Nurse), because she, Charlie and Uhura had gotten along like a damn house on fire the night before (damn women) but mainly because if anyone would stab him in his sleep, or had access when he fell asleep across his desk, Chapel would be the culprit.

Why did he make friends with the dangerous, criminally insane and violent?

"What Chapel?" He heard the irritation in his voice but ignored it, rubbing his eyes tiredly as she quickly plugged in three tricorders, smiling to herself when he refrained from ranting that they should have been charged hours ago.

"There's someone here to see you. A civilian."

"Who?"

"I didn't ask. Shall I get a name?" Her tone matched his and both knew that she refrained from a sarcastic comment, he rolled his eyes again.

"Damn it Chapel, I don't have time to deal with screaming fans." His dry humor never failed to catch her off guard and one of the rare moments where the two laughed was ended abruptly when they left the pharmacy and Bones came face to face with the civilian who was his visitor – a woman in a pencil skirt and work heels, her blouse crisp and her hair immaculate. She had dark hair, dark eyes and clutched her purse until her knuckles turned as white as Bones' face when he saw her.

Nancy.

His ex-girlfriend.

***

Campus was different to how it had been two weeks ago, the haunted looks and shadowed eyes overtook the bright eyes and genius minds. The population, on top of its death toll had been culled significantly with those needing personal time taking it, the Cadets (or whatever the hell they were) that remained from the senior class those who were either yet to accept the events that lead them to where they were currently or were dealing with it the same way that Jim, Charlie and Bones were – throwing themselves head first into more work than they thought possible.

James Kirk's swagger had a slight limp after recent events and when he saw exactly what he wanted, he ignored the wave of relief that swept over him like a comforting blanket, picking up his pace and falling onto the bench next to Charlie who jumped a mile, startled.

"Jesus, Jim!"

"Yes, my child?" He replied with a tired smile which quickly faded when her eyes raked over the same bruises that he had examined himself minutes earlier, both sighed quietly, their blue eyes serious.

"You need to go and see Bones."

"As do you."

"I have one scratch on my head; people repeatedly kicked the shit out of you."

"I don't think I was kicked, actually. Punched and shot at, yes, but I'm fine!"

"I can practically see Spock's fingerprints on your neck!" She cried and he squirmed under her harsh eyes, knowing that they were scanning him for any other obvious injuries that she could bark at him about.

"Do Vulcans even have fingerprints?" He wondered aloud and she paused, her face screwing up in thought.

"I'd assume so. Stop changing the subject!"

"Stop nagging me!" He laughed,she batted at his hands that tried to rifle through her bag, more than likely looking for any food that she may have had stashed, he sighed and leaned back on the bench, raking a hand through his hair and looking up to the sky.

"I'll get to Medical when everyone's load lightens."

"When you're still walking around with more bruises than clothes there's a problem." She replied quietly, sitting the same way that he was, also looking up to the sky. Daylight hid the stars that stirred mixed emotions, the shadows of their savage memories still framing the wonder that drove each Cadet to enlist in the first place.

After a moment Jim righted his head and cracked his neck, glancing sideways and slapping Charlie's knee, checking his PADD for the time, "Come on, I've got a meeting and I'm sure you're running late for something." He told her with a smile, unsure but enjoying it when she flushed light pink.

"Wouldn't be the first time today."

***

His first thought was that he should have sent Nancy packing the moment he saw her face but a mixture of the past few days and actually being glad to see her had screwed up anything that wasn't in tatters at the moment.

"Leo, I was so worried... so, so worried. Are you okay? Not harmed?" Her voice was breathy and she stepped back, gasping quietly when she saw the blood stained scrubs that he wore, when his hands gripped her upper arms to steady her it was an abrupt reminder of the times that he'd pulled her to him and pushed her away.

Everything had gotten so out of hand with them – he a Starfleet Cadet with a scalpel in his hand constantly, she wanting a normal life but as she stood in front of him a crumpled mess, it felt as though they were still the idealistic people who had met three years ago.

Nancy had been Bones' first serious relationship since his divorce and he probably should have credited her with more than he did, but the fact that their relationship hadn't ended with her screaming obscenities at him or one of his friends kicking her nose back into her skull definitely meant something.

"I'm fine Nancy, this isn't my blood. What are you doing here?"

"I heard about everything... on the news... I heard that Cadets... I tried to contact you but... I just needed to make sure that you were okay." She finally managed, collecting herself with a deep breath and smoothing her skirt.

"Wait here, I'll get changed." He steered her to a chair and his scrubs, calling to Chapel that he was leaving the bay for a half hour and glaring pointedly at his Head Nurse when she raised a single eyebrow, clearly insinuating something that if he knew, just didn't acknowledge, "Come on, let's get some food. Nance, I'm fine. Really."

"Did you know anyone who, you know... passed?" She asked in a whisper as he directed her towards the Mess Hall, tired and weary and unsure how to field her sudden visit. At her question his expression went hard and he nodded, managing just a small 'Yes'.

"Want to talk about it?" She had collected herself admirably and though Bones didn't want to talk about what was now monikered 'The Battle of Vulcan' and 'The Battle of Earth', he could see that she needed some form of conversation regarding what had happened and what he had faced.

He took longer than he would have liked to think it over, his frown deepening with every minute, every new thought that hit him before he shook his head, tucking into his food.

"It doesn't sound real."

"Tell me anyway." She pressed, now not for her own piece of mind but by Leo's reaction she could see that he hadn't thought much about what had made worldwide headlines on the news and talking it out might make things a little clearer.

Relaying what he could which between censoring classified information, keeping the horror to a PG rating and eliminating all of his personal turmoil, she looked sickened, finally laying her hand on his.

"But you survived." She was at peace and he was well on his way to being, as they sat their conversation transported them to three years before, when they had found themselves on the same wavelength, comfort in each others' idiosyncrasies. Talking to someone who wasn't battling their own Nero demons was refreshing; not having to give a detailed update on Pike was a weight off his shoulders and as Leonard McCoy relaxed, it was the first time in weeks where things felt comfortable.

***

"So you and Bones are...?" Jim asked conversationally as he crossed the grounds with Charlie though at his words she nearly face-planted into the ground. After a shower and some caffeine, she was just starting to feel as though the world was righting itself, but his words unravelled all of it.

"What? Why? Huh?" Blushing bright red didn't make it easier for her to play dumb either.

"Your bracelet was on his night stand. I just wondered, is all." Jim's playful grin showed his pure delight at her discomfort, though his facts were nothing other than common knowledge, really.

"I crashed in your dorm last night. Purely platonically, I must have left it there when I left this morning. Don't be all 'Murder She Wrote' on me Jim – and stop giving me that look!" She laughed and though he had no idea what the hell 'Murder She Wrote' was, he understood the general gist of it all so stopped wiggling his eyebrows.

"You know, when girls leave something on my nightstand – "

"Dollar bills don't count."

"Funny! It usually means that they're looking for an excuse to come back." He fixed her now with a stare that was as serious as it was mocking; she rolled her eyes and shoved his shoulder lightly.

"I slept late and left in a hurry. Do I need a reason to stop by your dorm? I'd like to think that I don't have to resort to cheap tricks as a ploy to get invited back in."

"Why wasn't it on my nightstand? Why wasn't my bed used?" He teased and she shoved him again, a smile breaking open over her jaw when he laughed quietly. Colour had again flooded her cheeks but she ignored it, feeling pretty damn good about it all.

"Let it go, Jim."

"Hi," A Cadet simpered with a coy wave as she passed, Jim's face lit up like a Christmas tree and he took a step to follow her to wherever, getting a sharp elbow into his side from Charlie who rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, don't. She looks _young_, like, 'Warden, can I have some more mush?' young."

"She's a Cadet, I'm a Cadet... age is irrelevant, isn't it?"

"I highly doubt that'd fly in the arraignment." Both giggled like idiotic schoolchildren, watching the Cadet who had made eyes at the blonde and clearly older man walk over to another Cadet and wrap her arms around him in greeting. Jim snickered almost in comradery at the young girls' actions, whilst Charlie merely rolled her eyes.

"Thanks your lucky stars Kirk – you got a reprieve."

"I would have preferred the reprieve that she would have given me."

"Reprieve, Chlamydia, same thing."

"Please. Chlamydia is _so_ passé, Tex. Get with the times... oh," Jim uttered quietly as they crossed the grounds back towards the offices that both had taken to spending most of their time in, Jim stopped walking abruptly and stared straight ahead, recovering after a moment, "I mean, yeah. _So_ passé." He trailed off, turning to Charlie with his eyebrows scraping his hairline. She had seen what stopped her friend in his tracks and looked a shade of green that he knew wasn't good, both their jaws hanging slightly ajar.

"Nancy?" Neither was sure who spoke, it was probably uttered in stunned unison, Jim recovered first and quickly scanned Charlie over with a watchful eye – she was pulling herself together but her eyes betrayed the questions beginning to form in her mind.

Ahead of them, a few feet away, Bones and Nancy stood in a tight embrace, kissing.

"Speaking of Chlamydia." She retorted finally, her voice an echo of its usual sarcasm and Jim wanted to scream – just when his two best friends seemed to be making headway, this happened. He had never been a fan of Nancy; she was nice enough but too straight an arrow. Damn it, what fucking next?

"Huh?" Charlie asked, her eyes turning to his and he cursed again, not realising that he'd spoken aloud, "Stop staring Jim – It's invading their privacy."

"They're making out in the middle of the fucking grounds – privacy be damned! Jesus... she's always had shitty timing! Why couldn't she? ... Why can't he? ... You! Fucking hell!" He muttered, frustrated, Charlie just wanted to leave before Bones and Nancy spotted them. She needed to yell, hit something, she needed her friends and she needed a drink.

"Me?! What the hell have I done?!"

"Nothing! That's the fucking problem!" He hissed and she shoved him in the shoulder, hard, her eyes no longer playful.

"We were never here, we know nothing and you will shut the hell up _no matter what_. Got it?" Not giving him a chance to reply or see the tears and hurt that were threatening to hit her, she glared at Jim for a second before turning and stalking off, getting out of sight as quickly as she could.

Nancy whatever-her-last-name-was, Bones' first serious relationship at the Academy. Charlie hadn't thought that she was too bad, just... boring. Not that she knew the specifics of their relationship but she knew that it had ended due to their vastly different lifestyles and the two had remained friends.

But this? Was more than friendly.

***

"We can't." Bones suddenly said, stepping back from Nancy and watching as she averted her eyes to the ground, her cheeks pink.

"Three years and still you haven't told her that you love her?" He didn't insult her intelligence by asking to whom she referred; Bones tipped his head back and rubbed his jaw. He could never call the woman a fool, which had been one of her main drawcards when they met. Until now, apparently after their easy conversation and overdue catch up, somehow, she had gotten the wrong idea.

"Things are... up in the air. At the moment, with everything that's happened, we can't expect anymore."

"She's always been in between us, Leonard. I thought you would have done something about it by now."

"Like I said – our friends have just died. Telling her, whatever, isn't really the best idea."

"And the years before that?" She asked smartly, he merely arched an eyebrow.

"And they wonder why we broke up." After a moment she smiled and laid a hand on his cheek, her dark eyes searching his. He almost wished that they affected him like they should have and sighed, rubbing his palm over hers.

"I'm sorry."

"We owed it a try, right?" She shrugged wanly, letting her hand drop slowly.

It was almost sad to see her leaving though he knew that it was for the best – nothing between them had changed, it was a relationship made of two people who liked each other and forced it to work. Though 'liking' wasn't enough and forcing it sure as hell wasn't. Not when he had a taste of how easy it could be, how natural it could be – forcing it was blasphemy to anything resembling a relationship.

Realisation was a virtue; it had been a good day.

***

"I'm having a shitty day." Charlie told Uhura as she fell into an empty seat in the Communications' lab, the other girl nodding tiredly.

"Likewise. Why is yours awful?"

"Jim and I saw Bones kissing Nancy." After a few moments of Uhura staring aghast and making movements like a Goldfish, she managed a string of curses that Charlie suspected were in a variety of languages. She heard some good 'ol fashioned Swahili in there and maybe some Klingon, but the rest was a mystery.

"Nancy? From first year? You're kidding!"

"Nope. Apparently they had lunch together."

"I didn't think they even spoke anymore!"

"Me neither. I suppose she would have heard about the Battle of Vulcan though, probably freaked out. They ended things relatively amicable if I remember correctly." Charlie sighed, shaking her head and cursing herself, Uhura rubbed her face with her hands.

"I finally thought that the two of you were making headway." After a long moment and a thousand smart ass remarks that flitted through Charlie's mind, only two words escaped her lips so quietly that Uhura strained to hear.

"Me too."

Romulan Ale was illegal for a reason and as and the room spun to her satisfaction, Charlie polished off her second glass and pushed it into the centre of the table that was already overflowing with empties and signalled for another. Though her choice of beverage was arguably in poor taste given circumstances, she and Uhura were on a mission.

Until the world was black and her insides were numb she wasn't going to stop, until the mental images that were flicking through her mind were gone, she wasn't going to stop.

"You know what? Fuck the Academy. Who the hell do they think they are, sending a bunch of half cooked Cadets in to rescue a planet?" A random Cadet from Engineering slurred next to her, spinning an empty glass on its side and smiling like a child when a new drink was placed in front of him and the rest of the table, an Ensign from the _Enterprise_ sat down.

"Notice the Admirals sat back here behind their desks and didn't get their hands dirty."

"Are we supposed to be surprised?" Uhura asked darkly, Charlie pushed herself to her feet unsteadily and raised one of the empty glasses, quickly exchanging it for a full one.

"To the paper pushing Admirals! Thanks for nothing!" She cried, throwing her entire drink back at once as the rest of the group did, they all cheersed their glasses and went to order another round but the bartender denied the group, citing that they had already had too much so they snapped and yelled, stumbled out and made their way to another bar in search of a wench with looser morals.

They tripped through the streets, drunk and loud, in pain and hurting until they reached another place, the music was loud and Uhura pulled Charlie's hands, running tipsily through the crowd to the dance floor as a song played, a really, really old one from a band that Charlie loved. They danced and swung each other around, laughing and dancing as though no one was watching before falling into the two vacant seats at their table, noticing that their crowd had grown. Jim, Bones, Sulu, Scotty and Chekov all sat there, slightly less drunk that Charlie and Uhura, looking up at the girls when they fell into their seats.

"To us! To being strong, independent women!" Uhura cried to Charlie, toasting their drinks as they threw them back in one go, Charlie cringed as the room spun again, shifting its axis slightly.

"How many have you had?" Jim was smiling and she waved her hands, shaking her head.

"Don't know, don't care. Until the room is black or I'm doing some_thing_ or some_one_ very stupid, this night is not over."

"Is that an invitation?" He replied smartly, Uhura messed up Chekov's hair.

"No, it's a warning. Keep up or fall behind."

"I need another." Charlie muttered, pushing herself to stand, Scotty already at the bar when she wandered over, "Romulan Ale!" She cried, taking the Engineer's hand and twirling herself under it but getting confused and nearly breaking his arm as they headed over to the bar, the guy behind there shook his head.

"Sorry – its illegal, we don't carry it."

"Not even for me?" She pouted; the guy still shook his head.

"Sorry." After great drunken debate they ended up ordering drinks and shots, carrying a tray back over, Uhura steadied herself and high fived Charlie, the two standing side by side.

"Ready? One, two, three!" She called as they threw their shots back, wincing and giggling, Sulu looked up at Charlie.

"You're not the calm girl we met a few days ago."

"That's because I'm drunk off my ass, Helmsman." She replied seriously, Scotty high fived her.

"Aye, I like these lassies! Everything about you lot is bloody exciting!"

"On the contrary, Mr Scott- Charlie and I are as boring as it comes. We're not the type of girls that you fall in love with; we're the ones whose notes you steal. Aren't we?" Uhura asked Charlie who burst out laughing, the two girls giggling at their own broken hearts and their stupidity.

"Aye, Miss! Here is to... Well, us!" They threw their drinks back and as Chekov (who was staring glassy eyed into something that looked like straight vodka), smiled crookedly and gripped the edge of the table to stop from falling from his chair.

"Troublemakers!"

"No Sir – we're the most innocent, boring girls in the Academy." Uhura replied snidely, both girls still giggling.

"And around it!"

"And we never do anything that would constitute as... scandalous, would we?"

"Who us? No...! We're like nuns, in a convent - We're demure!"

"And chaste!"

"Let's wear nun costumes to graduation!"

"Which we've aced, by the way, from being geeks and studying way too much."

"I feel the need to rectify that." Charlie mused, Sulu eyed both girls and wobbled much like Chekov was.

"Are you two insane?"

"Close. On the warpath." Charlie measured, Jim looked over to them.

"Something you want to share, ladies?"

"No... Not us. We don't share. We're not worth sharing with." Uhura replied, Charlie burst out laughing and grabbed either girl by the hand, pulling them to the dance floor in reply. The boys at the table watched them go for a moment before exchanging glances that plainly said '_women'_ in exasperated tones, all non-verbal before conversation returned, flittered and drunken excerpts from men whose minds were a million miles away and clouded with more than any realised.

Bones watched Charlie with a frown – she hadn't spoken two words to him since she stumbled into the bar, she had ignored the PADD message that he'd sent mentioning the plans that Jim had orchestrated and when he had casually bumped into Admiral Archer ('casually' meaning stalked the hall that the man's office was on until the slave driver emerged), the man had said that she was done for the day. The twinkle in the Admiral's eye had annoyed Bones more than he cared to admit and had been the basis for his first drink.

"What's up with her?" He finally asked Jim, jutting his chin in the direction of Charlie and Uhura who were on the dance floor, laughing wildly and barely managing to keep their footing. If they weren't careful, another bar fight would break out much like the night that the whole friendship shebang had started.

"Not sure. Pressure, I guess." Jim shrugged, the blonde man could never lie convincingly to anyone close to him, this time no difference.

"Jim?" Bones' tone was sour and probing; Jim sighed and set his beer on the table in front of them, still looking straight ahead.

"We saw you kissing Nancy today. Nancy dude, really? Nancy?" Finally he turned to his best friend and Bones' insides flushed cold for a moment, he tipped his head back. _Of course_.

"She kissed me, I stopped it and she left."

"We must have caught the brief interlude."

"Fuck." How high school was this whole thing? Just when things were looking up, he ruined them all over again. He could practically hear his villainous ex-wife taunting him now and upended his glass, feeling the burning liquor barely singe its track through his body anymore.

"She just needs to hear reason." Jesus, now Jim Kirk, King Man Whore of the World was handing out relationship advice. He had hit a new low.

"Yes, because she's known for being reasonable and logical." He muttered sarcastically, someone slammed down a glass next to him.

"Fuck logic!" Uhura crowed, Jim glanced up at her, his eyes smiling.

"I could have used that sentiment when your boyfriend was trying to kick my ass."

"Shove it Farm Boy, I'm not in the mood." Her eyes were a mixture of sadness and anger, much like her compadre who wandered over, her eyes brushing uncomfortably over Bones'.

"I'll get another round." He heard her utter and as she turned to make her way through the bar he scraped his chair back to follow her, tell her what she needed to hear, what he needed to get off his chest. A hand caught the edge of his shirt and he glared down at Jim who shook his head, blue eyes serious, "Not tonight."

"Three years and you're delaying them? Really Jim?" Uhura's voice was pure drunken bitterness; McCoy stepped out of Jim's grasp and left him to deal with the other woman.

"I'm being logical." He heard and shook his head at the man's choice of words, thankfully out of range to hear how Uhura processed them. Obviously within the space of 24 hours, the hobgoblin had screwed up again. God forbid, he and the pointy eared bastard might actually have something in common.

She was ordering when he leaned on the bar next to her, she stiffened at his presence but didn't acknowledge him so after a moment; he leaned down to her ear.

"Nancy kissed me. I pushed her away."

"That's lovely. Why do you feel the need to share this with me?" Her voice was like ice and he had to admire her tenacity, she was drunk and was holding onto the bar for support, but still could manage cold, pointed sarcasm. She barely looked at him and it stung so he caught her chin with his fingers and turned it so that he could see her eyes, making sure that she looked into his even for the briefest of moments.

"You know damn well why." She watched him for a moment and looked as though she wasn't sure what to say, her eyes trying to read his.

"Here you go! Oh my god – Bones! I was so worried!" A voice cried from the wrong side of the bar and a tray of drinks was slid to them, Charlie's eyes turning to slits as Bones cursed, seeing the damn redheaded barmaid he'd had the one night stand with the night before Jims' hearing, the night before the Battles that had changed everything.

_Damn it, fuck, bullocks, fvadt. _

What the hell was her name?

"It's me, Lily! I saw everything that happened on the news the morning after we... uh, met and - oh god, it looked terrifying!" She continued, her smile flicking briefly to Charlie who smiled thinly.

"You two look as though you have a lot to catch up on. Excuse me." She took the tray with a sobered ease and caught Bones' eyes again, her expression unreadable. He extricated himself from Lily only seconds later, albeit rudely but returned to the table prepared for the firing line, to beg and plead his case like the whipped man he was, glancing over the table with a frown when Charlie wasn't there.

"She and Uhura have decided to continue on their merry way." Sulu told him easily and whilst McCoy's ears pricked that the newfound friend knew who he was looking for without having to ask, he relished the non-judgemental tone that he used – something Jim wouldn't have spared him.

"Look out San Francisco!" Scotty boomed again, holding up another glass and emptying it as a salute to the departed women, Bones cursed again and followed suit.

Somehow, he knew that the sickening hangover that he'd be facing the next day would be the least of his problems.

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** *Hides from things being thrown* Ah, past conquests. I'd love to see a 'Jim Kirk Past Concubine Convention'. That would be absolutely epic. I imagine it to be a mixture of Rock of Love and some massive protest march that has a bajillion screaming people with banners._

_Just quickly, I didn't explain why Uhura was in a piss-ay mood and on the warpath with Charlie in the end part of the chapter, solely because the next chapter explains it all. We finally get some Spock goodness!! :) (I can hear you squeeing, Vulcancamp!) _

_Massive thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter all those bajillion years ago: _FuzzehDeath, Canna, Yayyou, mello-chic, Hidden Relevance, slice of cheese (Welcome aboard!), WinchesterWench, Raxsah003, Steff7, VikingShadow, SarahWeasley, orbitbystarlight, crystalclear8050, thebloodrose, You've Got Gold, Sharnay (Welcome aboard!), Vulcanvamp, Jac Danvers.  
_Also to the legends whose PM's make me grin and their prodding and 'Where the hell are you's?' I thank you for_: FuzzehDeath, Hidden Relevance, Oblivion's Tragedy, Goats for rent, mello-chic. _I'm so sorry if there's anyone I've missed!!_

_Has everyone got their copy of the DVD? I was made aware, very angrily, that it came out a few weeks earlier in Australia than the US and, no offence, but I gloated. Hey! If JJ Abrams is going to kill off every Aussie in his movie (Eric Bana, George Kirk and that Engineer Olson dude), then really, it is fair... _

_Please review and again, I'm sorry for the delayed update, we should be slightly better on track now... :)_

_Xx_


	28. Don't Bother

_Okay, I could have posted this a couple of days' ago, but, I kid you not, my internet decided to shat itself. That's never happened before and the stupid company was closed over the weekend. Nice for some.  
Anyhoo, all fixed now!! :) _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek or any of its characters, storylines and/or anything recognisable. I own everything else unless specified. Plagarism, even in the smallest form is abso-fucking-lotuely annoying and pisses me off beyond belief.  
The Chapter title is taken from the song of the same name by Shakira. I'm not a fan of hers but I like this song. Please don't judge me!!_

_Without further adieu, here we go!_

* * *

24 hours earlier...

_Her head resting on his rock hard chest and the feeling of his even, shallow breaths that matched his even, shallow heartbeat as though it was his own language. Showing up at the bar last night, Uhura had felt her heart explode with happiness and took it as a sign that maybe, just maybe, things were starting to repair themselves. _

_She felt smugly victorious, lying in his arms and quickly pushed the victorious feeling aside as soon as it popped up. _

_Later in the day and with a smile across her face that nothing could ruin, Uhura entered Spock's quarters and the first thing that she noticed was the bag next to the door. A grey duffel bag that was obviously packed; her heart sank along with her shoulders. Used to Spock travelling, going off planet for diplomatic missions over the course of their relationship, she knew that this time it was a personal trip. _

"_I must speak with Vulcan High Command." His voice was soft and quiet, as though he was worried about hurting her feelings which she knew he was, but his actions still stung. After the night before, his coming to the bar, she had believed that maybe, just maybe, he had decided to stay with Starfleet, stay with her._

_A trip to see Vulcan High Command, the men who ruled his people with logic and zero emotion as opposed to the woman who stood in front of him, usually so full of fire and life, her irrational decisions always making him question his logical nature and ponder the ramifications of his human side more so than he usually allowed. _

_However, the Nyota that stood in front of him, eyes still on the lone grey bag was broken, tired and drained. Her losses were not to be underestimated, whilst Spock had lost his mother, Nyota's close friends' made up her family and their deaths were as brutal as Amanda's. _

"_When will you be back?" She finally asked just to fill the silence that hung in the air, still refusing to look at him, refusing to let him see the tears that were welling in her dark eyes._

"_I am unable to calculate a specific time frame," He told her, his voice only an octave lower than businesslike and as she nodded, he crossed the room to stand in front of her, lifting her chin with his fingers. When she ripped her jaw from his touch he felt as though an ice blanket had wrapped over his shoulders and his dark eyes turned questioning, "I want to comfort you."_

"_Then leave. Do what you need to do." _

"_Your words suggest encouragement, yet I am lead to believe by your tone that you are angered by my actions," He started, sighing when she looked to her shoes again, still avoiding his eyes admirably, "Look at me." She raised her chin stubbornly and he could see the veil of tears that she would not let fall, he sighed imperceptibly. _

"_I'm confused. Not encouraging, not angry. You're unsure of whether to return to the rebuilding of your people or to stay with Starfleet, I get that, but while you're unsure, I'm left in the balance of wondering whether or not the man I love is going to return to me or his arranged marriage. I can't ask you to stay here, in Starfleet, for me. God, Spock! Do I act the role of petulant girlfriend and beg you to not to leave me?! Or do I ignore what my own heart wants?"_

_She felt as though she had betrayed herself by saying those words aloud and immediately dropped her chin down again, this time he didn't stop her, merely kissing the top of her head._

"_I apologise for... everything." _

"_Whatever Spock. Be with your people." She tried not to let the bitterness seep into her voice, determined not to let him see her cry. He picked up the grey bag and regarded her once more, her eyes steely._

"_I shall let you know of my safe arrival. Will you be okay until I return within the week?" It was something that she always requested when he left and like she would ever tell him that she wouldn't be okay, her voice held nothing but bitterness and repressed anger and her words were short, chopped off at every syllable._

"_Don't bother, I'll be fine." _

***

24 hours later...

An eye opened after a few long moments of willing it to and mentally lying to herself that the light would affect her, nor would opening be of said eye make her want to be violently ill. Her neck was twisted at an odd angle and spikes of pain shot down her neck, spine and her left leg, stemming from her hip and when that damn eye finally cracked open, she realised that somehow, she had fallen asleep (read: passed out) partially sitting, slumping and lying against the side of her bed on the floor.

The only reprieve was that the parts of her that weren't in excrutiating pain were numb. Saving their torture for a later moment.

After she entangled herself, she managed to half crawl, half drag herself to the bathroom, reaching up to fumble for the button to release the door open up the wall whilst keeping her eyes closed – movement + hangover = barf.

What she wasn't counting on was the figure passed out on the bathroom floor, Uhura's jeans half off, her shoes on the wrong feet and as she woke, cursing and unfolding herself slowly much like Charlie had done moments ago as Charlie's stomach heaved.

Three hours later, both girls had emptied not just their stomachs but every other organ in their bodies that held any kind of substance, liquid or matter. All the while cursing themselves, the men in their lives and anything else that sprung to the few brain cells that were still relatively active in their minds.

As Admiral Archer and Charlie walked the halls at a slightly slower pace due to Charlie's shuffling like an old person towards another meeting, he said nothing of the fact that when Charlie arrived to his office, she was still wearing her sunglasses and was about five seconds slower to respond to anything that he said than usual. Finally smiling at her with a mixture of former wild child pride and fatherly concern, he addressed the issue head on.

"You know that Medical can clear hangovers up, makes life a lot easier."

"It's illegal."

"I think that would be the least of offenses on your record. If you want to go to Medical, I don't mind."

"I'll be fine." She replied, rubbing her temples absentmindedly and concentrating on the floor in front of her, muttering to herself incoherently. Her muttering stopped abruptly except for a quietly uttered curse from behind Archer as they entered the large conference room, filled with a small scattering of Admirals, three Chancellors and then the faces that greeted her – Uhura, Jim, Bones, Sulu, Chekov and Scotty. The crew from the Enterprise, the hierarchy that held their futures in their palms.

Scotty saw her shocked expression and smiled, sitting formally in his chair.

"You didn't know it was an 'all in' either?"

"Not too sure what I thought actually." She admitted, sneaking a glance to Bones who was talking with two Admirals quietly, she guessed about Pike's condition.

"How are you feeling?" Chekov asked quietly with large, innocent eyes as she set her things down and slid into her chair next to Uhura.

"Absolutely amazing."

"How much do you remember?" Sulu questioned, his eyes dancing and she rubbed her temples, forcing a thin, wry smile.

"Absolutely everything."

The meeting called to order and as the people around them spoke, the "heroes" of the _Enterprise_ sat silently, either trying to come to grips with the company they found themselves with, or ignore the suffocating tension in the room. It was almost tangible and strung across the table like a tightly tuned guitar.

"Where is Spock?" Someone asked finally and as the posse of hung over Cadets, Lieutenants and the lone Russian Ensign snuck glances at Uhura, the woman visibly stiffened but said nothing.

"He is meeting with Vulcan High Command regarding some personal issues." One of the Admirals piped up formally sounding Vulcan himself, a few pairs of eyes still remained on the obviously uncomfortable Uhura. Add some more tension to the room and it was stifling.

Bones tried not to openly stare at Charlie across the mahogany table but as she purposely avoided even looking in his direction, he kept sliding his tired hazel eyes to hers in the vague hopes that she would glance back with a look that told him that he hadn't messed up too damn badly.

It was beyond ridiculous now and the tension between the two had escalated past boiling point, they were past the point of no return, this was their cliff, all he had to do was jump. And hope that she didn't hate him enough to let him crash and burn.

"...and then of course, there is the issue of Cadet Kirk's academic probation – " One of the Chancellor's voices cut into the wandering thoughts of everyone in the room, seven voices cried out in aghast unison.

"What?!"

"You've got to be kidding! The lad saved the bloody planet!" Scotty boomed, Jim was glaring at each member of Starfleet as though he wanted to pull a phaser yet uncharacteristically said nothing.

"Cadet Kirk cheated an academic test and then was brought aboard the _Enterprise _illegally. There are certain things that we can't overlook," Was the calm reply, Bones' voice was pure anger.

"That is absolute crap! The entire Battle of Earth was a no win situation yet he beat that!"

"Were your calculations also used that time, Cadet Houston?" Admiral Turch tacked on tauntingly and Charlie dropped her PADD loudly onto the table, wincing at the clatter that hurt her entire body. Her eyes narrowed and her thumb jerked in Chekov's direction, though her eyes didn't move.

"No, Ensign Chekov's were. Which was a good thing, or we'd all be having this meeting from inside an imploding black hole, you know, dead and all." She snapped, the Chancellor who had spoken originally held up his palm for silence.

"I was merely going to acknowledge that the matter had been disregarded entirely."

"Might want to get in quicker next time," Sulu half-snapped, half-joked, the Chancellor chuckled affably and consulted one of the datapads that lay at his fingertips.

"Just out of curiosity, how are the repairs to the _Enterprise _coming along, Mr. Scott?"

"Uh, very well Sir. The hull is nearly completely fixed which is quite a feat as most of it had to be replaced completely." The Scottish accent was businesslike, Admiral Archer piped up with a tone that was clipped and cold.

"Replaced entirely? Was that absolutely necessary?"

"Absolutely, Sir. To repair it would take even more materials and man power. Why? Do you have a problem with the Starfleet approved practices?" Scotty asked back, his tone matching Archers, the older man glaring menacingly across the table.

"Well, first of all you send my dog to god knows where and then you send the ships' only warp core into a black hole? I'm sorry if I'm a little sceptical, Mr. Scott." He replied, Scotty just rolled his eyes and sat back in his seat, his accent could be heard but his words couldn't which was obviously a good thing.

"He got us out of there, if he hadn't ejected the core we would have been dragged into the black hole. Sir." Jim finally spoke quietly; blue eyes icy much like the ones from the girl sitting next to Archer who nodded in agreement.

"Not to mention that he beamed Jim, Pike and Spock aboard at the same time – will you back off?" Charlie asked irritably and for a moment all Jonathan Archer could do was smile – two pairs of angry blue eyes stared him down and if Chris Pike had seen it would have been delighted.

"Fair enough. Engineer Scott, I apologise." He relented after a moment, Scotty looked like he'd been slapped across the face and gulped, his eyes not daring to venture to the now similar smirks that Jim and Charlie wore.

"Apology accepted, thank you Admiral."

"Though why I'm apologising for him butchering my dog..." Archer muttered under his breath, accepting the slap that Charlie issued to his arm, "Without him, I wouldn't be here right now. Who else would be your lackey?"

"Whoever they would be, I'd think that they'd be slightly less hung over." Archer shot back in a whisper, already irked at having to apologise within the last five minutes, backing down from Charlie's tirade was not an option. She blushed but said nothing, eyes turned downward.

The meeting ended shortly thereafter and as everyone filed out, Admiral Barculo taking Bones with him immediately, Charlie collected her things and hung back, snagging Jim by the hem of the plain black undershirt that he wore.

"What's up?"

"Huh?" He replied, clearly something was on his mind – he had been all but completely silent for the entire meeting which was unlike Jim Kirk, he hadn't cracked one joke, which was unlike Jim Kirk and now his pale blue eyes were troubled which, again, was unlike Jim Kirk.

"I asked what's up."

"Oh. Nothing, just got a lot on my mind. How are you feeling? Last night was..." He trailed off, at a point where he had no idea what to say in regards to the whole Charlie and Bones thing. Hell, if the Battles hadn't pushed them together then he had no idea what would. But he doubted that Nancy, a bar wench and a jealous streak a mile wide helped any situation.

"Last night was last night. I'm fine. Jim, what is it? You were all but mute in there and you look like someone just killed your puppy."

"Check with Engineer Scott, he has quite the knack for that." Admiral Archer scoffed as he passed, Jim barely registered the comment and that fact worried Charlie even more.

"Come with me." Jim instructed suddenly and lead the way to an empty lecture hall a few doors down, shutting the door behind a now almost sick with worry Charlie.

"You're worrying me." Her voice was a plea for him to open up if not for his own benefit for hers and as she sat nervously on the desk at the front of the room, Jim paced, his eyes on the carpet and his bottom lip twisting between his fingers.

"I need to tell you something and I need you to be calm about it. Actually no, I need you to freak out. Actually, I'm not sure – "

"Jim!"

"This is huge. Like, incomprehensible huge."

"Oh my god – she's pregnant." Charlie breathed, feeling all of the blood in her body turn to ice at the thought.

"What?! Who?"

"I don't know, no girl specifically, just any random you've hooked up with."

"No! No one is pregnant!"

"There was a scare?"

"No one is pregnant or anything like that! God damn it, they've given me the _Enterprise_!" Jim cried, enjoying the moment of peace and quiet that doubled as stunned silence.

"Given you the _Enterprise_ as in a mini replica of...?" Charlie asked slowly after a moment, her voice giving away her shock. Surely Starfleet hadn't given him the _Enterprise_? As in, given to Captain?

"No, _given_ as in promoting me to Captain, given," Jim's voice was barely a whisper and one of his two best friends could see a scared little boy standing on the verge of a very large cliff hidden under his brash exterior. However, she also knew that said little boy would rather fling himself off the cliff than walk a safe path to wherever. A few more moments of stunned silence passed before Jim spoke again, his eyes boring holes into her, "Say something."

"Uh..." Was all that Charlie could manage, her jaw hanging comically.

"I want you there. On board, as my right hand. I get to choose my crew." The little boy was slowly disappearing and the excited young man with the galaxy in his palm was emerging, his voice losing its hesitance and gaining excitability.

Another moment of shocked silence passed, Jim looked to her and amended his invitation, "Think it through first. But I can't imagine being anywhere without you, Tex."

"Oh my god." She finally managed; her mind completely blank – James Tiberius Kirk, the guy who pulled the fire alarm at the ripe age of 24 to get out of a test was going to be Captaining the pride of the fleet?

Christ, they'd gone into a third parallel universe, hadn't they?

"Talk to me." Jim was standing in front of her and looked nervous, she looked up at him and felt a grin spread over her jaw.

"Oh my god!" She finally cried, jumping into his arms for a tight hug, feeling him lift her off the ground and laugh quietly.

"Thank god."

"Oh my god!" She cried again and when he set her down, the second wave of words hit her and it was Charlie's turn to pace, Jim sitting on the desk like she had moments ago, smiling as she babbled.

"They gave you the Enterprise? Just like that? What about Pike, are they sure that he isn't going to recover? What about the rest of the fleet- ooh, there are going to be some _mad_ people gunning for your blood, Jim! What's your mission? When do you leave? When did you find out – god, it wasn't before last night was it? Why didn't you say anything in the meeting?" She finally stopped and turned to him, scratching her head and not hiding the confusion on her face.

"Pike is going to be promoted to Admiral status – even if he makes a full recovery, he needs a lot of time to heal. And they want the fleet deployed as soon as possible, _Enterprise_ included. To prove that we aren't as vulnerable as some may think."

"Fucking Klingons." She glowered and though he smiled, he still watched her carefully. She'd been put through the ringer yesterday and last night though she would never admit it; a bombshell might just finish her off.

"I leave as soon as I have a crew, we've been trained, debriefed and whatevered and I found out this morning. Chancellor Barnett asked me not to say anything until after the meeting."

"You haven't even graduated!"

"I'd say that what we went through classifies as final exams, don't you? Tex, what we did out there, what we saw and conquered wasn't just amazing by our standards; it was fucking amazing by everyone's! Don't you get it – we've been being tested over the past couple of weeks!" He cried and immediately, her face contorted into a confused frown.

"Test?"

"Sulu's been reprogramming flight navigators for nearly every ship, Scotty's been in charge of repairing the damn ship itself, Chekov has probably been proving nuclear physicists over the galaxy wrong, Admiral Barculo has been up Bones' ass, you've been doing all of Archers' diplomacy stuff, Uhura breaking down transmissions under some other Admiral's eye – don't you get it? They've been watching us to make sure that what happened out there wasn't a fluke and see how we handle everything!"

"But... whoa." Another stunned silence hit her as Charlie realised that Jim was right – they'd been tested from the moment that they had returned.

"I know, right? I've got another meeting, are you going to be okay? Will I see you for dinner tonight?" He asked carefully and she nodded, he pressed a kiss to her forehead, squeezing her shoulder.

"Sure." He ducked his head to catch her eyes after a moment, he could see the shock reverberating through her and in a twisted way was glad – he felt odd that shock hadn't hit him yet and at least she could be shocked for the two of them.

"Hey – you need to talk to him." He finally told her, no names necessary as he headed for the door, she narrowed her eyes.

"Shut it Jim – I'd hate to go all Rambo on your newly Captained ass."

"Love you too, Tex." He laughed, disappearing and the second that he was out of sight, she yelled out.

"Jim!"

"Yeah?" His head poked around the edge of the doorframe, his smile wide.

"Congratulations." He winked and disappeared again, giving Charlie a moment to collect her bag, her mind whirring with a million things but barely grasping a single thought.

***

Jim entered Medical with a strange sense of foreboding - though he was there to tell Bones his big news, the fact that he had a Vulcan hand print across his neck meant that more than likely Bones would use the time to stab him with god knows what else.

"Hi Jim," One of the Nurses winked at him as she passed and he delivered a wink back, hearing an exasperated tut behind him and he rounded, expecting to see Bones. Surprised to see Chapel with an annoyed look on her face he faltered for the briefest of moments before recovering and flashing a charming grin.

"Can you at least take three steps into the place without hitting on one of my Nurses?"

"Jealous Chapel?"

"Exceedingly. Your better half is dealing with a patient; he should be out in a moment." She replied over her shoulder as she disappeared into another room. Minutes later Bones emerged and after Jim managed to usher him into Bones' own office, he broke the news to his best guy friend to the same stunned silence.

"Well I'll be damned," Were the first words to leave Bones' lips and he reached out to shake Jim's hand, "Congratulations."

"Thanks. I want you there also – I want you to be my CMO." Bones rubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw as he processed the thought – a star ship? He had always imagined himself on a Starbase, it had never really occurred to him that he could be a CMO on a ship until the recent disaster, "Think it through though, I don't expect any answers right this moment." Jim added, slightly stung that neither of his best friends had jumped at what he thought was an amazing opportunity – he would have. Hell, he had.

"I never thought about being a ships' CMO is all Jim. And god knows with you in charge, that place will need a more than qualified surgeon and a team of magicians patch you alone up, regardless of the rest of the crew." He half-joked and as Jim grinned, Bones' eyes narrowed.

"You're still bruised?"

"I tell you that I've been promoted to Captain and the first thing that you want to do is stick me full of drugs?"

"Call it practicing should I take your offer." Came the dry retort and a hypo was prepared as a scan was taken, the two men discussing the news in greater detail.

"How did Charlie take it?" Bones finally asked, the girl's name twisting very slightly in his throat.

"She was speechless."

"Alert the media."

"No shit. Then she babbled." Both men smiled and this time, Jim refrained from handing out relationship advice seeing as a hypo was well within reach and though his 'numb tongue' had been funny in retrospective, he didn't fancy re-living the experience.

***

"Cadet Houston, a word?" She certainly had a few that sprang to mind, but turned and smiled at Admiral Turch as he peered from his office door.

"Of course Admiral."

"I'm not keeping you from anything, am I?" He asked, indicating that she sit in the seat opposite his desk.

"No Sir, of course not."

"How are you coping with everything?" He asked and she nodded slowly.

"I'm fine Admiral. Thank you for asking."

"We all lost a lot that day."

"Yes Sir." There was no barometer large enough to gauge how badly she didn't want to talk about the Battles with Admiral Turch. Yes, a lot had been lost, she was still mourning her friends, but there were also other things that were keeping her a fragile, internal mess.

"Have you given much thought to the future?" He asked out of the blue and she balked, collecting herself quickly.

"As in...? Sorry Sir, I'm not entirely sure what you mean."

"I take it by now that Jim Kirk has told you of his promotion and offered you a place aboard the _Enterprise_." He was watching her carefully but she didn't mind, this was the businesslike Admiral that had been one of her Professors over the past three years.

"Yes, he has."

"And have you accepted his offer?"

"Not as of yet. I, um, need to think it through. His news was definitely a shock."

"It was to me also. But before you take his offer, I'd like to propose one of my own." Her blood ran cold and panic swelled up inside though she had no idea why, gulping hard.

"An offer?"

"There's a research vessel, crew of 150 – 200 leaving in three weeks. I'm sending you the mission specifics now, I'd like you to read them through; give me your thoughts. I think you'd make an excellent addition to the team." He told her and to say that she was floored was an understatement, gaping at him for a few moments and feeling her PADD buzz in her bag with mission specifics. _She was having mission specifics sent to her from an Admiral._ That thought alone hit home and she coughed, nodding.

"Thank you Admiral, I definitely will look it over." She managed and the man smiled, appraising her.

"I'd expect a few more of these in the coming days, Charlie." Were his parting words as she left his office in a daze, already pulling the PADD from her bag.

***

Admiral Barculo watched as Bones dealt with one of his patients and caught the Doctors' eye, beckoning him over as soon as he had dismissed the ailing Cadet with a wave of his hand and some under-the-breath grumbling. The two men headed into the office that Bones had been using but was yet to claim as his own and oddly, Barculo took the seat usually reserved for visitors, leaving a slightly thrown McCoy to take the one on the business side of the desk.

"What, Admiral?" He asked tiredly – it had been a day full of curveballs, on one that he was nursing wounded pride and personal dramas nagging his mind also.

"You have possibly the worst bedside manner that I've seen in all my years," McCoy snorted and folded his arms over his chest, "But possibly the best hands and raw talent."

"Raw?" Came the quipped reply complete with arched eyebrow.

"You're not exactly a seasoned Starfleet professional, you know."

"Considering I haven't even graduated yet, surprisingly, I agree." He watched as the Admiral's eyes widened slightly with the reminder that the man sitting opposite him was still pending graduation... hell, he hadn't even finished his classes, worked as a Doctor aboard a ship getting treated like a slave by the CMO aboard, let alone all of the grunt work that a shitkicker straight out of the Academy usually got stuck with.

Though, as he glanced at the desk mounting high with files and paperwork, a 'to-do' list visible and crowded with tasks, Barculo realised that McCoy was doing all of the above with zero choice.

"I have no idea how they can make you kids go back to class after everything has happened," The older man mused, shaking his head slightly and though there were no details or plans to re-start classes for the remnants of the graduating class, there were promotions being handed out. Go figure, "Which is one of the things that I wanted to talk to you about." He added, standing and ordering a coffee from the replicator in the large office.

"You wanted to talk to me about classes?"

"I want to talk to you about the CMO position I'm more than sure Jim Kirk has offered you."

"I haven't accepted." That caught the Admiral off guard and he glanced at the other man curiously, Bones just shrugged, "I hadn't ever imagined myself aboard a ship. And with Jim as Captain? A ship that size? You need the most experienced CMO for that."

"Experience doesn't always outweigh talent, remember that. And though I'm still unsure of whether giving Jim Kirk the Enterprise, and allowing him to choose his own crew, is a good idea, I think that you would be bored at a Starbase."

"Starbases are likened to an Earth ER."

"In a manner of speaking, yes. However, at a Starbase, you're the second, sometimes even third Doctor to get to the patient – if injuries are extensive and irreparable on the spot, their ships' Doctor or Nurses do what they can and then ship the patient to the Starbase. Sometimes the most potent action is the patchwork, sometimes which is the most detrimental to the patients' care. At a Starbase, it's your job to fix their mistakes and still have the patient pull through." If he didn't know better, Bones would assume that Admiral Barculo, the Chief of Medicine was dissing Starbase roles and a lot of CMO's and their staffs in one hit. The man was famously acid tongued (another parallel between the two); Bones sat back in his chair and sighed.

"Not that being a CMO isn't what I want – It's just a big ask."

"Everything behind those doors was a big ask, yet you've handled that admirably." Barculo pointed over his shoulder, indicating the infirmary behind them and Bones nodded – he wasn't going to sugar-coat it, the last couple of weeks _had_ been a big ask. And as morbid as it sounded, it was thrilling and he had loved nearly every second of it. He relayed that information and the Admiral beamed, nodding.

"And it seems to me, though I barely know him personally, Jim Kirk is the type of man who will need a highly skilled CMO aboard. He, and the people I assume will be his senior crew, aren't exactly the type to shy away from a fight. Yourself included, of course."

"I'll pretend that isn't an insult." Came the dry reply, Bones' thoughts heavier now than they had been over the day – damn Barculo and his damned food for thought. Though he was right – could he handle the idea of someone else patching Jim up? Not getting on his case to get to Medical after he gets his ass kicked? God forbid, if Charlie ended up on his surgical table on some random Starbase, butchered and made worse by a hack CMO's hand, would he not blame himself?

"It isn't, it's a compliment. You remind me a lot of myself when I was younger. And that brazen attitude and quick skill is exactly what we need out there. You'll help more people out there than you will sitting behind a desk and pulling the occasional surgery on a Starbase somewhere. Trust me." Admiral Barculo pushed himself to stand as McCoy's PADD beeped; he reached for it without looking.

"You're telling me to take the _Enterprise_ gig?"

"I'm simply offering an opinion. I'm old, I miss being out there in the thick of things. Starbases are great for the equipment and facilities that ships can't carry, but if you really want to help, then a ship is the best place for that. Also; as a CMO I think you've more than excelled."

"Thank you Sir."

"Just think it through, okay?"

"Will do." Was the quiet reply as the Admiral left, Bones stared at the closed door for a moment before cursing to himself and glancing down to his PADD.

***

Charlie had been transfixed to her PADD since Admiral Turch had sent through the mission briefing, though it was taking her numerous tries to read each sentence.

Jim was going to be Captain of the _Enterprise_.

She could be an Ensign on board, millions of light years away from San Francisco, potentially with all of their friends...

Was Bones going? Would he be Jim's CMO? She hated that she couldn't storm into Medical and find out what he was thinking; what his plans were. Though she probably could, her behaviour the night before had more than likely been a neon sign as to her feelings for him – she was humiliated, felt sick to her stomach and after Jim's bombshell, anything else heavy would be the end of her.

Chancellor Barnett had requested a meeting with her for later that afternoon and after her class ended, she made her way towards' the Chancellor's office, her stomach in knots. It was a large office and the man's assistant lead her in, her tall Chancellor towering over the scared Cadet, pointing to an antique, ornate chair that sat opposite his desk. A bizarre choice of furniture but his entire office looked like an antique store, artefacts on the walls except for a large painting, intricately carved desk and chairs. Oddly, it felt like a museum rather than Starfleet.

"Is been awhile since we've had a chat, Cadet Houston." He smiled and she nodded meekly, folding her hands into her lap.

"Yes sir." Though he'd been in some of the meetings that she had accompanied Admiral Archer to, one-on-one conversations between the two were rare. Which, to her, was a good thing.

"When was the last time that you were in my office?" He mused conversationally and she flushed, looking to her boots.

"Um, I believe that it was first semester of second year."

"What was that for?" The man knew, he was clearly enjoying watching her squirm and it frustrated her – were all men acting like fools for a reason over the past 24 hours? - and set her jaw, looking him in the eyes.

"Shipping charges. Which were dropped."

"Right. Well, your disciplinary record is spotted at best, but your academic record is pristine. You're one of our shining stars, Miss Houston."

"I work hard, Sir."

"Play hard also, it appears." He mused, a twinkle in his eye and though she didn't want to appear rude, she was getting more frustrated and the Chancellor was clearly toying with her.

"I'm sorry, have there been any charges or reports of my behaviour lately that need to be discussed?"

"No, no. Either you've stayed out of trouble or managed not to get caught – I'm not sure which I'd prefer."

"Seeing as you have an order of Romulan Ale on back order Sir, I'm going to assume the latter." She replied through pursed lips and when he laughed, she relaxed in the slightest.

"Let's also assume that I believe that is your only business trade going on, shall we?"

"Suits me." She wasn't sure what he knew and though she had been marginally well behaved lately, she wasn't about to divulge anything.

"Your work aboard the _Enterprise_ was nothing less than stellar, you know." He told her conversationally, watching as she nodded respectfully.

"Thank you, Sir."

"How did you feel about it all?"

"I'm not sure. There wasn't much time to reflect."

"True. From what I've heard, you had quite a lot thrown at you."

"When would that be, Sir? When the rest of the fleet was already butchered by the time that we got to them so we were of zero help to our friends, where our Captain was held hostage by an angry, future Romulan or where one of my best friends was saved from a black hole with .76 of a second to spare to have the crap kicked out of him by the Acting Captain, to be thrown off the ship to return using technology given to him by a future version of the guy who marooned him in the first place? Or would it be the fact that I gave the order to fire on said men?" She asked almost rudely, the Chancellor didn't flinch.

"Pick any of the above. That must have been difficult."

"I'm sorry Sir, but was there a point to this meeting? I have to finish grading papers."

"I'm assuming that you have heard of Jim Kirk's promotion?"

"Yes."

"And I also assume that he has offered you a position aboard?"

"Nothing specific, but yes."

"I think that you should take it. You handled yourself admirably during both Battles and it seems unfair to me that we're promoting Jim Kirk, but not you." He mused again and though she agreed, Charlie felt her breathing constrict.

"I've also been offered a position aboard a research vessel by Admiral Turch."

"I had a feeling Arthur would get to you," He smiled knowingly before consulting a datapad briefly, "Any position that you decide to take and should you desire the responsibility, it would be my honour to promote you to the position of Commander."

***

Uhura stared into her tea, unable to get the large grin off her jaw.

She was going to be the Chief Communications Office aboard the _Enterprise_.

It was literally a dream come true, her goal from the moment that she had decided that Starfleet was the place for her and the moment that she had heard about the _Enterprise _being built. Prepared for years of slugging it out in the pits down in the guts of the ship, she was a Cadet, well, soon to be Lieutenant as the position entitled and the job was hers.

It was too good to be true.

Damn Jim Kirk, for all of the trouble that he had caused, for all of the frustration that he had caused her, since their first meeting in the bar back in Iowa – finally, after three years of trouble had finally proven his worth. Never had she imagined that he of all people would hand her dream job to her on a silver platter.

She would call her parents later, when realisation had sunk in a little more, but Spock? She had already stopped herself nine times from sending him a message; if he wasn't determining her to be a factor in his life decisions, then neither was she. Though that fact stung – she loved him more than she thought possible, where did that simple fact fit in? Did love really conquer all? She had her dream job, was her dream man in her grasp also?

***

Commander Houston.

Commander Charlotte Houston.

_Commander Charlotte freaking Houston!!_

She wanted to scream, dance and was sure that she looked like an idiot, walking the halls of Starfleet. Suddenly they seemed so much smaller and on numerous occasions, she was sure that she let out something resembling a strangled shriek.

Admiral Archer smiled kindly as Charlie re-entered his office, wordlessly handing him a PADD and though he took it, didn't acknowledge it.

"I take it that you've heard about Jim Kirk's promotion?"

"Sure have." She said nothing of her own, wondering if he knew already.

"You seem over the moon about it." He joked, indicating that she sit down and when she did, he could see just how much the news had taken its toll on her.

"It's a shock. Of course. I mean, Jim Kirk as Captain of the Enterprise? Don't forget Admiral, I know that man better than I know myself."

"Which is why I'm assuming that he has asked you to be a part of his crew."

"I couldn't give him an answer straight away. I'm a horrible friend," She muttered, burying her face in her hands for a moment, the thoughts destroying her good mood. It should be a clean cut decision, right?

"No, you're reviewing your options. Which, god forbid, is the smart thing to do in your position, Charlie."

"That would be 'Commander' to you, thanks." She grinned and his smile matched her own, standing up from his desk and pulling her into a tight hug.

"Congratulations. Wow, you're only two ranks down from me... that is a scary, scary thought." He mused and she laughed, sitting back down.

"I figure that within six months I can be your boss." She joked and they spoke about her promotion for a few more minutes, having him on her side was something that though she joked about, Charlie hoped would never change. Admiral Jonathan Archer was a wonderful man and dare she say it, she was starting to realise that he may have also quietly been one of her greatest allies.

"How many classes have you taken over the three years that you've been a Cadet?" He asked suddenly and her expression was a mixture changed to one of annoyed frustration and confusion.

"I can barely remember my middle name at the moment let alone schematics of my supposed education."

"I remember asking you in the first year why you took so many classes and you told me that though you knew that Starfleet was where you needed to be, you had no idea whereabouts within. I remember because it struck me as odd – a smart girl, a determined girl – focussed as all hell but no idea on what."

"What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing. But I must admit – I think diplomacy is where your talents excel."

"You just want me to take your workload."

"That and it's the truth." He fixed her with an unblinking stare for a moment and she sighed, tipping her head back.

"I love learning about new life forms."

"And you're good at it. For someone with an attitude like yours – "

"Charming and effervescent?"

"Sarcastic and short tempered. For someone with an attitude like yours, I must say that you're oddly diplomatic and empathic when it comes to people you don't know personally." He smiled, she raised an eyebrow.

"Pot calling the kettle black much, Admiral?"

"I'm just saying that a star ship would be the best place to learn about new life forms. A ship as in the Enterprise, or even a research vessel." Ah. So he knew of Admiral Turch's offer.

"That's always what I imagined – myself on a research ship, spending months at a time in one place. Or being on the bridge of a ship..." She trailed off, shaking her head after a moment, "It's just a shock."

"You know, my best friend was the Head Engineer on the _Enterprise_ during my reign. Of course the ship was about one-eighteenth of the size that it is now, but having Trip onboard made life... easier." He divulged and she nodded respectfully, knowing that Trip Tucker had died in mission. Not that she wanted to bring it up with Archer, but the thought of any more of her friends dying before her eyes was something that haunted her every day since the Nero fiasco.

"I imagine."

"Though not always, mind you. He was a little like Jim Kirk, a bit of a troublemaker – had an opinion about everything. A Southern boy though, a good heart."

"Bones is a Southern boy, a good heart." Her voice was barely a whisper by now.

"And so far, over three years, the four of you have managed to cause more than your fair share of headaches. I don't even want to know how many times the three of you were brought up in faculty meetings," He smiled and she looked proud, shrugging.

"Just keeping you on your toes."

"I'm just saying that having your friends aboard, being in a role that you have the support of love and friendship with... Charlie, it makes life infinitely easier."

"I imagine that it does. However, like you have also pointed out, Jim and Bones get themselves into a lot of trouble. I can't be their cleanup crew."

"Funny, I was going to say that they're yours quite often," He remarked dryly and she rolled her eyes, "The _Enterprise_, in all of its glory is a sight to behold. I had the time of my life on there, I'd hate for you to deny yourself that for whatever reasons." His eyes were kind and she nodded, her thoughts heavy within her mind.

"I'd hate that too."

* * *

_**Author's Notes:** Jim Kirk as a Captain. I can't help it, I know that he's Captain Kirk, but I can't help but shake my head at the thought of this Jim as a Captain. :) _

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter: _

_Yayyou, Larxenethefirefly, Goats for rent, VikingShadow, Raxsah003, PinkTribeChick, Steff7, Rossi's Lil Devil (Welcome aboard!), mello-chic, crystalclear8050, Canna, WinchesterWench, Lacoste Skywalker, FuzzehDeath, JR Cloud, Hidden Relevance, thebloodrose, High Queen Crystal._

_And thanks to FuzzehDeath, mello-chic, PinkTribeChick and WinchesterWench for their PM's!! :)_

_Insert begging and pleading for reviews in here. :)  
Xx_


	29. Come Away With Me

_Hi! Just a little one today, some soul searching...  
A huge thanks to everyone so far to everyone who has read and reviewed - much, much love to you all, even to the ghost readers. I hope you're liking everything so far. _

_Disclaimer: Star Trek isn't mine, Charlie is.  
The chapter title is taken from the Norah Jones song of the same name - not my favourite of hers, but it's classic Norah, I suppose. _

_Enjoy!_

* * *

She'd tried over the course of three years to find her place in Starfleet. To figure out where she belonged and with whom, the path that she wanted to take, career-wise. Sure, Charlie Houston could run an illegal scam with barely a bat of her eyelid, but there wasn't a career in that... at least, there wasn't a class that she could take for it.

She had never feared anything within Starfleet, not even when she had arrived on campus not knowing a soul or caring that she was unknowingly stepping into a legacy left by her father and his cohorts, not even when she'd seen fleet ships stagger back with their significantly culled crews injured and tales of fights with the Klingons and Romulans getting whispered around campus.

She had never been scared of walking into an exam, she'd stared down her lecturers and yelled at her tutors from across the classroom when debates got heated, she'd fearlessly argued with people whose experiences in space exploration were noted and renowned throughout the galaxy... and won some of those arguments. Whilst Charlie's classes kept her in the top 99% of her class, she still felt as though she was floundering and after graduation, she would be at a loss for where to go.

Their Cadet years were something that passed by in the blink of an eye and suddenly the long afternoons stuck inside a lecture theatre or linguistics lab, nights spent at the local bar, up late doing assignments and causing havoc didn't seem so drawn outas they had three years ago. Well, four for some. But now the time to make those hard decisions had arrived and though they should have been cut and dry, getting her head around the thoughts and believing that they were actually there, were actual offers was a whole other ballgame.

They'd all inherited responsibilities that none of them felt ready for, they had all become people they weren't sure they wanted to be. Nero had killed an entire planet and a fleet of ships within an hour with almost all of that hour to spare but his damage had gone beyond the genocide of Vulcan and the slaughter of the Starfleet rescue crews, it had left scars to those who had survived, changed them into people who looked at the galaxy now not as their playground but through jaded eyes that now understood that their actions kept them on knifes edge on a daily basis.

What would she do if the next time, they weren't so lucky? Could she handle losing Jim in front of her eyes? Bones? Sulu, Chekov, Scotty or Uhura?

Could she handle letting them out there without her?

Bones and Jim, for all of their bravado reminded her of the Lost Boys from an old Earth story, Peter Pan. The two men in her life were Lost Boys and she was their Wendy Darling, cleaning up and making sure that they stayed in line. It took a certain swagger and a certain cockiness to be a Captain or a Chief Medical Officer and both of her boys had it in spades, both cock sure and arrogant but crawling to her with their ailments, their problems, their true selves and although she would never admit it, Charlie enjoyed that. She was their last line of defence.

A night of soul searching, a night of sifting through her thoughts with a mixture of tears running down her cheeks at times, laughing to herself in others and a few conversations to herself aloud and she knew not just where she needed to be but exactly what she wanted.

***

Bones' patient load was starting to clear from recent events and though he was glad, it was a sure sign that things were moving on. Slowly, the remaining senior class were starting to filter back to campus, looking tired but not as fragile, looking fearful of the halls that now had a haunted feel to them.

He should take Jim's offer. Christ almighty, if that idiot was going to be in charge of the fleet's pride with that infant Russian behind the wheel, they'd need a Doctor who would be able to wrangle Jim into Medical rather than let him shirk it like he tried. At that, Bones rubbed his temples – he'd finally managed to get Jim into Medical, only a couple of weeks later than he needed. Sure, his depraved need to play the hero role stemmed from deep seeded daddy issues, but if Bones was to take on CMO duties, especially on the _Enterprise_, then he needed to push that aside and stab Jim with every hypo needed before Jim realised that he actually needed it.

He shouldn't take the offer - he had Aviaphobia. Sure, three years at the Academy had pretty much cleared that right up, but someone who had to be threatened into a seat on the shuttle way back in the backwaters of Iowa by a woman a quarter of his size should not be the Chief Medical Officer of the largest ship in the Federation fleet. That was absurd.

He should take the offer – it was a job that every other Doctor wanted. But did he? Sure, the idea of constantly being busy and discovering new corners of the galaxy was surprisingly intruging and the new discoveries that he could make, the cures that he could find – that aspect had him hook line and sinker. Just because he had never thought about being a ship's CMO, that didn't mean that it wasn't a good idea. He had never thought about enrolling in Starfleet, but drunkenly scribbling down his signature was the smartest move that he had ever made and hell, he had never thought about getting married and then divorced, but those were the direct events leading to his enlisting so in a bizarrely twisted way, he was thankful to the ungrateful wench he had stupidly married for making him miserable on land.

He was a new man; a changed man. He should take it.

Then there was the whole Charlie issue. He knew that she hadn't taken Jim's offer on the spot; Bones didn't expect her to, but the thought of being at opposite ends of the galaxy to her made his face cloud. Would she mind being at the opposite end of the galaxy should he take Jim's offer and she didn't? Because that mere thought churned his stomach.

Two nights ago at the bar, she had avoided him like the plague, though she hadn't really been of sound mind and he supposed that his trying to explain Nancy's presence and being interrupted by Lily hadn't gone down too well. But did she remember any of the night? His gut told him that yes, she did... he let out a long sigh and stared up at the ceiling. They'd been at the point of no return since he had kissed her on the _Enterprise_ and now things were not only past no return, they were past the point of ridiculousness.

He'd held himself back from her so many times by now that it was like a second nature. For every step forward, take one back. Both emotionally and physically, determined to keep the facade up, determined to maintain their friendship that had fallen so easily into place.

Between their friends and whatever dramas were plaguing them over the past three years; whenever they were together was when Bones and Charlie were at their best. With widely ranged opinions and matching sarcastic tongues, they could devour anything that was thrown, just not each other.

He sighed and sat up, feeling the blood flow back to his feet from being propped up on the messy desk as his PADD chimed, the sound making him cringe – usually, it meant more work, a soul-sucking meeting or worse, paperwork being requested. If he really was a changed man then he needed to start acting like it, acting like an adult and not some love-sick teenager and he nodded to himself as he read the message sent to him from a Chancellor whose face he couldn't remember, groaning aloud.

It was an invite to celebrate the recent promotions doled out within Starfleet which had occurred all across the board. Hell, should he take Jim's offer Bones would be included in that group – which made his eyebrows rise. Damn it, the invite was merely a formality; there would be no getting out of it. Just freaking great, exactly what he needed.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself from his chair and set about typing a message to Jim when one came through from the same man, whining about the function – clearly Jim Kirk's reign as Captain wouldn't involve a whole lot of meet and greets, Bones thought sarcastically. On the up side, Charlie would be in attendance...

One step forward, zero steps back. He was thinking about the future now, it was time to get his affairs in order.

***

Charlie watched as the first year Cadets from the class that she was teaching for Archer filed out, pinching the bridge of her nose. She'd had something resembling the pain of an axe in her skull for the past 24 hours and if the infirmary hadn't housed a certain gorgeous Doctor, she would have gone, flopped over a bio bed and demanded that she have a lobotomy or whatever was needed to make the pain go away.

In the back of her mind she could hear Gaila's chirpy voice telling her to 'get laid!' as she did whenever one of the girls was ailing – the Orion's magical cure for everything. Though this time, Charlie had a feeling that the girl, as warped as she had been, was right. Though her cure was selective of course, not just any random, just any one night stand would cure her.

"Goddamn Pon Farr," She muttered to herself, snickering slightly at the parallels as she gathered her things, her loudly beeping PADD making her jump when it went off in her palm. A cocktail party, in honour of the recently promoted officers. In other words, an excuse to drink and kiss hierarchy ass. Fantastic.

However, she needed to clear the air with Bones and a public venue would be the best option – nothing could be thrown, yelled or torn off with their dignities (and ranks) intact.

Already, it was shaping up to be a very interesting night.

* * *

**_Author's Notes:_** _Like I said, only a 'lil one for now!_

_Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter: Skatinggirl2011, ayachan1412, WinchesterWench, High Queen Crystal, Goats for rent, PinkTribeChick, Raxsah003, crystalclear8050, Yayyou, Rossi's Lil Devil, Canna, Larxenethefirefly and Ac Collins, really, I know that you probably roll your eyes at this - but reviews really do make my day. :)  
_

_And to High Queen Crystal, PinkTribeChick, crystalclear8050 and WinchesterWench for your PM's - much love again!! :)_

_Reviews are greatly appreciated!!  
Xx_


	30. What You Know

Charlie glanced at herself in the mirror, her eyes searching the face that seemed so foreign to her. She pulled at the square neckline of her dress and sighed at her reflection in the mirror, deciding that yup, this was about as good as it got. Never would Charlie Houston – _Commander_ Charlie Houston – admit that she was nervous, but she was pretty damn close.

It had been a long day (it felt like years!) and it felt like her entire life had changed. Telling Archer that she had made the decision to be aboard the _Enterprise_ had been first on her 'to do' list –he had been proud, that was a moment that she'd never forget. The look in his eyes that his protégé was following in his footsteps, the murmured tone in which he told her that he'd known it all along, the smile when he'd joked that the galaxy had no idea what they were in for. It had been a sweet moment, one which she would continue to treasure for years to come.

Archer had been there since day one, a father figure who taught her more than he would ever know. Sure, she wanted to stab him in the neck with a hypo spray every now and then, but for the most part, he had been a constant source of advice, support and... Well, she wasn't stupid. She knew that someone had her back with a few disciplinary actions over the years and she was 95% sure that Jonathan Archer was her guardian angel, Starfleet style.

In between notifying Starfleet hierarchy of her intentions, she still hadn't managed to track down Jim. Either he had lost his communicator (again) or was stuck in meetings all day (again). She wanted to see the look on his face and so far, they'd been playing communicator tag across the grounds all day which suited her just fine; it gave her a reason to want to attend the mandated Starfleet gathering that night.

Which bought her to the dress, the nerves that she would never admit to and the fact that if she didn't force herself out the door, she wouldn't end up going - mandated or not.

Seriously, she was nuts. Crazy, in dire need of a psychological evaluation, three fries short of a Happy Meal – the whole shebang.

What the hell kind of sane person took off across the galaxy with James T Kirk in charge? The man was so unhinged that he... well, he was Jim. The dude who thought it would be funny to program all of the replicators to serve Jell-o one day. The same guy who chased anything in a skirt. The same guy who... Jesus, Jim Kirk's playful indiscretions stretched longer than... well, anything.

Or would it be wise to be on the same ship as the irrepressible but charmingly grouchy Doctor McCoy? The same guy who, on their first bang – up mission, accidentally blew up Kirk's hands to three times their size after smuggling him on board? Yeah, Bones' halo had a few dents in it too.

Or, if he took the invitation that she was sure Jim had extended to him, would the sane person aboard be Spock, the logical Vulcan? The morally sanctimonious Professor who was in a forbidden relationship with a Cadet? Clearly he wasn't as far from their lunacy as he maintained.

She sighed and adjusted her dress for one final time, her eyes scanning her own form... would she ever admit that she was nervous? Charlie Houston could handle drinks, she could handle her Professors and she was starting to think that she could maybe – possibly – handle Starfleet hierarchy. But could she handle them all together? Well, for starters, she wouldn't be drinking ale and dancing on bars. God forbid. No, she would be on her best behaviour – as a newly minted Starfleet Commander, that shouldn't be too difficult...

Right?

"Time to grow up, Peter Pan." She murmured to herself in the mirror, it was her mantra and deciding that this was as good as it was going to get, her neckline wasn't sitting right and with another tug at the it, she rolled her eyes – it was fine, she was being pedantic and looking for any excuse to delay the inevitable.

The Bones inevitable.

If he had taken Jim's offer as CMO aboard the _Enterprise_, they would be on a ship together indefinitely. If he hadn't, they would be at opposite ends of the galaxy. Both options made her stomach twist uncomfortably, not sure which she would prefer. She definitely didn't believe in 'out of sight, out of mind', but if he wasn't there, with her and Jim, she'd be a basket case of worry and wonder, more than likely making a fool out of herself with the constant comms.

I was difficult to love as it was, but it was even more difficult to love a best friend. There was so much at stake; the horrifying thought that if a romantic relationship went sour, she also lost a best friend in the deal.

She sighed and slid her feet into her heels, and finally, with one more chant of her mantra and another hike of the neckline on her dress – really, why wouldn't it sit square? – She was done and grabbed her purse, dashing from her room (as quickly as one could dash in heels), before she lost the miniscule amount of resolve that she had somehow mustered from somewhere.

It was an open bar which suited Bones just fine and the open bar meant liquored up girls which suited Jim just fine. People milled around and talked as though they were all equals, but in reality, the whole shindig was just an ego boost for hierarchy to be fawned over by every lower rank.

Leaning against the bar gave both men a clear view of the room and faces before them as well as becoming a prop to smile politely and talk to others when they passed, but not necessarily to mingle until they absolutely had to. Read: Were dragged away and forcibly made to play nice.

"You're going to suck as Captain if you can't even fake it with your own people, you know." Bones mused to Jim who flashed him a bright smile, his eyes following the behind of a Lieutenant stationed on one of the other fleet ships.

"That's why you're on my crew - so that I'm not the most unsociable person aboard." Jim retorted with a grin, McCoy having advised Admiral Barculo and Jim that morning of his decision to take Jim's offer for the _Enterprise_. Jim had actually hugged him – good lord, hugged him – in the middle of the Mess Hall during breakfast before straightening and trying to pretend that he was aloof and nonplussed about everything.

Needless, it was not an experience that McCoy wanted to repeat. Ever again.

"Thank you." McCoy replied dryly, staring back into his glass as Jim threw that patented lecherous smile at a girl with hair piled high who sashayed past. He took two steps after her and then gave up, sighing and leaning back against the bar.

"That's the thing with having the entire fleet grounded; I have no idea who is fair game and who isn't." Jim sighed, as though it was the greatest tragedy in the world, Bones' expression didn't change.

"Suddenly you have to be selective? The horror."

"Suddenly I have to make sure they aren't one of my officers. Or will soon become one of my officers. That reminds me Bones, I get to choose my Yeoman."

"I'll alert the sex crimes unit."

"That's hilarious. You know, you actually sounded like Charlie then." Jim smirked, knowing that his best friend felt a sharp sting at the mention of their third amigo. And so he should, Jim nodded mentally, _they're both stubborn asses._

"Dick move." His CMO merely grumbled.

"This captaining thing is a total cock block." Jim muttered as another girl sauntered past; Bones was beginning to wonder if the path in front of the men was solely being used to catch the young captain's eye. The Captain's pitiful expression finally earned a smile from his best friend who coughed back a laugh, swirling the remaining liquid in his glass.

"Damn it Jim, there's not going to be a lone female on board then is there? I withdraw my acceptance." Bones only half-joked, Jim visibly paled at the thought, shuddering at such a sentence.

"All male crew? Don't even joke about it. We've got Uhura and maybe Charlie... speaking of, where is my favourite felon?"

"You're asking me?" Bones asked dryly – quirking an almost Vulcan eyebrow at Jim who merely shrugged, finally determined not to get involved in anything between his CMO and female accomplice. It had taken three years but in recent weeks, days, whatever, the two had reached boiling point and even Jim Kirk wasn't suicidal enough to dip his toes in that water.

"You could at least try to look like you're having fun, you know." Jim replied a few moments later, the Doctor levelled a stare at him, shaking his head slightly with a smile.

"Jim, I'm exhausted. The first night that I've had off in ages and I'm here?" He half – whined, rolling his eyes as Barculo motioned for him to join in his conversation from across the room, McCoy pushed himself from his station along the bar and squared his shoulders, throwing the last of his drink back.

"If I'm not back in fifteen minutes – rescue me."

"You're the one supposed to be bailing me out of stuff!" Came the mature reply from the newly minted Captain who laughed loudly when his CMO discreetly flipped the bird before turning back and making his way through the crowd to the Starfleet Chief of Medicine.

Charlie sighed and stepped into the large room, eyes immediately scanning for a familiar face. A few of them floated around the room though none that offered her comfort – no, that mantel was held strictly for her boys, Uhura and possibly, _possibly_, if she was that desperate, Archer.

Jim started forward past Bones to go to Charlie, being stopped abruptly by a hand to his chest.

"I've got this." Bones murmured as he crossed the room to her. Jim just wanted to yell 'finally!' after his new CMO but refrained, deciding that all heckling would have to wait until whatever was simmering between the two had been, well, solidified and they weren't in the presence of Admirals who could take his ship away as stupidly as they had given it to him in the first place.

"Hey. Wow..." Bones leaned down to press a kiss to her cheek in greeting, allowing himself that fleeting touch as a reward for not tackling her in the doorway. Because yes, he needed to be more irrational around Charlie Houston. Three years of mooning after her and pretty much acting like a love-struck teenager hadn't shredded his balls quite enough.

"Thanks. You look pretty 'wow' yourself." She smiled back, he wondered if it was because of the compliment or the contact that she was blushing. Either way, he'd chalk it up to a victory.

"Thanks. Come on, let's get a drink."

"Definitely. I'm surprised you let them drag you from Med Bay for this." Charlie told him as they walked through the crowd, he pulled a face.

"Yeah, the word 'mandatory' was used," He scratched the back of his neck, "A lot."

"I know what you mean. Between Uhura and Archer, I feared for my life not turning up," She chuckled; it was infectious and damn it if he was struggling on keeping his eyes on her face, "Is Jim here? Or is he shirking his captaincy duties already?" She joked as they crossed the room, trying not to focus on how his hand felt guiding her lower back. She couldn't feel anything from his hand downwards and somehow, miraculously, she didn't trip over her feet.

"He's here, playing it cool. I'm sure he'll more than likely throw himself into the spotlight soon," Bones replied with a grin that made her thank the heavens that she was managing to put one foot in front of the other still, "I took his offer this morning." He added quietly and she definitely wasn't imagining the fact that his voice was laden with implications. It was a warning not to continue down the path they were mutually heading down if she was going to the opposite end of the galaxy, it was hopeful that she would be onboard and it was worried about her choice, whichever way it went.

Her cryptic smile did absolutely nothing to soothe any of the above.

They finally reached the bar where Jim had of course made a grievous choice with the girl he was hitting on. Bones' face turned a bizarre shade of purple that was reserved for his friends' stupidity (Charlie had seen that colour after her little tiff with Kellaway), cursing as he dragged his fingers through his hair. Captain Playboy took Charlie's hand the moment that she was within reach, spinning her around and letting out a slow whistle.

"Damn Tex..."

"Jim, stop. This is Barculo's daughter." Charlie watched as Jim eyed his best friend warily, obviously looking for any traces of humour or sarcasm and whilst the two boys stared each other down, Charlie sighed in annoyance and glared at the blonde girl in question, who was propped up along the bar next to Jim.

"Well? Are you Barculo's daughter?" She snapped, the girl nodded and stirred her drink.

"He's my father."

"He's a nice guy," Jim bit out, looking slightly perturbed, as he looked up at Bones and Charlie innocently, "How was I to know that it was 'bring your daughter to work' night?"

"Jesus Christ Jim, you're a Captain now." Charlie muttered, a headache forming behind her eyes. Funny, it was the same pinching sensation that she got whenever her male counterpart did something deviant and stupid. Which was often - too often.

"Besides, Barculo is the _Chief of Medicine for the Federation_, dumbass. He could castrate you with cling wrap and a piece of fishing wire." Bones pointed out as the girl sidled away quietly, obviously not liking the direction that her night, her chance with Jim, had taken. At Bones' comment both Jim and Charlie screwed their noses up, looking up to the Doctor with identical expressions.

"Cling wrap and fishing wire?"

"Some of those medical journals scar a person for life, okay?" He replied irritably, "What are you drinking?" He asked Charlie who quickly ordered a gin and tonic before fixing her eyes teasingly onto Jim. She stared at him unabashedly for a few moments, knowing that he noticed but ignored the direct eye contact, squirming after a few moments.

"Okay, fine Tex, I give up – what?" He asked after a few moments and she smirked again, delighted at the news that she was about to share.

"Permission to come aboard, Captain?" She asked with a mock salute, barely getting her words out before he let out a load roar, picking her up into a tight hug that almost crushed her ribs.

"You accepted the Enterprise offer?" He yelled, letting out another whoop and spinning her around when she nodded. Archer had barely batted an eyelid when she had confirmed it earlier in the day, simply asking her what had taken so long for her decision. Truth be told, she couldn't answer him. Pride maybe? Fear of another day like that fateful one weeks ago?

"Are you serious? You're not playing with me, are you?" He asked and she shook her head, feeling and odd sense of giddiness, elation at finally having a ship, a future and two amazing guys to share it with.

"I'm not playing with you and yes, I am serious. I gave all of the Admirals and Chancellors and everyone my decision this morning. Sounds like we all did," She smiled, exchanging a smile with Bones whose eyes were dancing in the dim light as he took a drink, his eyes never leaving hers even when she turned back to Jim, "Don't ask me why, but with you in charge of the _Enterprise_, sounds like the most fun a girl could have," At that, Bones' smile turned lecherous though neither of them caught the others' eye or said a word, "Besides, I figure someone has to pull the two of you out of whatever you will definitely manage to get into."

"Right. Because your halo gleams all the time." Bones scoffed, Jim's bright blue eyes exuding delight at his rapidly forming rag-tag crew.

"And we've never bailed you out of anything either." He teased affably, practically dancing on the spot in excitement and Charlie put her hands on his shoulders, laughing at her Captain.

"Congratulations." Bones smiled, half relieved at her decision and half worried. Another how long in close quarters? That was it, something had to give. They could both feel the tension yet again but ignored it, a resolve settling over the two easily as she nodded.

"I can't let you two have all the fun now, can I? Besides, who's going to keep you out of trouble?"

"Ha!" Bones barked quietly, "Things haven't changed _that_ much Charlie."

"Yeah, you're a bad influence on the two of us at times, you know." Jim told her matter-of-factly before his shit eating grin broke free, "I knew you wouldn't be able to resist my captaincy."

"Why does that sound like a really bad morning after pickup line?" Charlie retorted, unable to stop smiling.

"He does it without thinking." Bones replied, Jim started to protest but Charlie got in first.

"That's what I've heard." Jim's eyes danced at their banter, darting between his two best friends – now also his Commander and CMO. Things were falling into place almost too well and though he was a little stung that it had taken both more than a split second to accept his offer, he understood and now that they had seen reason, they could get to the good stuff.

Literally.

* * *

:)

_Disclaimer: Clearly I don't own any of the characters or ideas except my own, because they'd all be pretty pissed about being on a two year hiatus. Also, I don't own the song named in the chapter title, Two Door Cinema Club do. _

Xx


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